Plain-language summaries

Institute for Work & Health (IWH) plain-language summaries condense research findings in various formats. At Work articles explain study results with comments from the study leads. Research Highlights summarize journal articles in easy-to-read, digest formats. Sharing Best Evidence summaries highlight findings from systematic reviews and other types of reviews conducted or led by IWH researchers. Issue Briefings discuss key research findings from IWH or elsewhere on topics that are of particular interest to policy-makers.

Pencil with questionnaire
At Work article

IWH research on vulnerable workers leads to tool for measuring risk factors

29-item survey gauges vulnerability via workplace hazards, policies, procedures and worker awareness
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A doctor reviews a chart with someone over the phone
At Work article

Workers’ compensation systems vary greatly in their medical assessment practices

Differences in use of medical assessments may point to solutions to common challenges, IWH study suggests
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open journal in library
At Work article

IWH research plays key role in shaping WSIB policies that led to better outcomes

New case studies describe how Institute findings on return to work, recovery and retraining were ‘formative’ in changes at Ontario’s workers’ compensation board
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A warehouse worker tries to cool himself. A thermometer is in the foreground.
Research Highlights

Risk of heat- or cold-related illnesses across a broad population of Ontario workers

It's long been known that extreme temperatures can pose health hazards, from heat stress disorders to hypothermia and frost-bite. An IWH study found that a strong relationship exists between outdoor temperature and illness among the working population. And, as this study shows, it's not just in extreme temperatures that workers are at risk.
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A bearded man in shadows
At Work article

Work disability puts people at risk of premature death, study finds

Innovative 19-year follow-up study from IWH finds people with permanent impairment face higher risk of early death—especially those injured in younger years
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A woman grimaces while holding her back
At Work article

Employer supports improve function and productivity of workers with arthritis

Study finds not everyone needs accommodation, and that different accommodations meet the needs of different individuals
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View from the ground of utility technician working on hydro lines
At Work article

Nachemson lecturer shared lessons from 20 years of tracking impact at NIOSH

Lecture by Dr. Paul Schulte examined efforts to measure impact at U.S. federal research agency
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Overhead view of a crowd of people crossing an intersection
At Work article

Premium rates, work demands play role in whether injuries involve time loss

IWH study finds the distinction between lost-time and no-lost-time claims goes beyond injury severity
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A woman grimaces after falling off her bike
At Work article

Work-related injuries decline in Ontario but no reduction found in non-work injuries

Study of injury trends in Ontario finds divergence in work-related and non-work injury rates
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Two colleagues at an industrial plant
At Work article

Success stories offer new guidance to organizations on path of OHS change

Breakthrough change model finds external influence, new OHS knowledge, health and safety champion among catalysts for sustained change
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A mature man doing exercises with hand weights with help from a physiotherapist
At Work article

Preventing upper extremity MSDs: What the latest research says

IWH systematic review recommends workplace-based resistance training to help prevent and manage upper extremity musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders
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A series of MRI scans of the brain
At Work article

Health-care use remains higher for two years among workers with job-related concussions

Two-year study finds health-care use by workers with mild traumatic brain injury not back at pre-injury level
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Exterior shot of office buildings at night
At Work article

Risk of work injury linked to night, evening shifts still high after switching to days

IWH study finds those who move into or out of shift work face the highest risks of work-related injury
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Silhouettes of a man and a woman looking straight ahead
At Work article

IWH to explore how work affects health of women and men differently

New research chair explores role of gender and sex in work injury risk, recovery, chronic disease outcomes
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Close-up of hands rifling through hanging file folders
Issue Briefing

Suppression of workplace injury and illness claims: summary of evidence in Canada

This Issue Briefing highlights findings from two reports by Prism Economics and Analysis—one for Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board and the other for the Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba—on the incidence and risk of claim suppression.
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A supervisor talks one-on-one with a worker at a computer station
At Work article

Supervisors’ views on job accommodation influenced by key organizational factors

Leadership style, supervisor autonomy among factors linked to greater support for accommodation
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Overhead image of a busy, open-concept office
At Work article

IWH eight-item questionnaire may predict future claims rates

The IWH-OPM, developed as part of the Institute’s leading indicators research, found to predict future claims rates in a sample of Ontario firms
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A woman, with toddler on her lap, stressfully goes through her bills
At Work article

Single moms stay off work longer than other parents after injury, IWH study finds

Single moms more likely to take longer to recover, but less likely to get benefits when injured
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Close-up of file folders of funding projects
At Work article

Making use of systematic reviews, and other upcoming IWH projects

A look at research funded by external grants in 2013/14
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A row of orange safety cones
At Work article

Ontario firm uses OLIP to track health and safety in suppliers

Real estate services company shares story of how it puts leading indicators to use
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