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.

A group of office workers high-fiving each other
At Work article

OHS champion has pivotal role in breakthrough change: study

IWH study of health and safety success stories shines light on the potential of individual change agent to create momentum for safer practices
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At Work article

Nachemson lecture: Research partnering with policy for data access the way forward

Partnership between UBC and WorkSafeBC serves as model for granting access to big data
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At Work article

Non-academic OHS sources enrich systematic reviews

IWH review team also finds workload a challenge when including grey literature in systematic reviews
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At Work article

Study finds supporting learner confidence to apply new skills key to effective training

IWH trial of office ergonomics training also finds little difference between in-person and online training
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At Work article

New research centre to examine work disability policy in Canada

The Centre for Research on Work Disability Policy, led by two IWH scientists, aims to improve how people with disability are supported in the labour market
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At Work article

Safer needles rollout study identifies factors for implementation success

Good communication, gradual transition and outside support pave way for new technology
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At Work article

People hit by joblessness in early 1990s faced higher risk of dying within 10 years

IWH study finds people unemployed in 1991 had higher mortality rates across broad range of causes
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At Work article

A round-up of IWH research funded by external grants

A snapshot of some of the studies being undertaken by Institute for Work & Health (IWH) scientists, thanks to external grants received between January 2012 and June 2013.
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At Work article

Building an understanding of back pain, a common but poorly understood condition

The Cochrane Back Review Group, hosted at IWH, celebrates 15 years of synthesizing and assessing research on neck and back pain
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At Work article

Heart disease, arthritis, diabetes raise risk of leaving workforce

IWH study of chronic conditions common in older age finds strong associations with people being out of labour force, particularly when conditions are paired
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At Work article

Leading indicators project tests five tools for ability to predict injury claims

With help from 1,800 Ontario employers, IWH team probes workplace factors for link to future claims
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A helmeted worker sits on bench with laptop
Issue Briefing

Developing leading indicators of work injury and illness

Leading indicators have the potential to help identify factors affecting the risk of injury, allowing workplaces to address these factors before injuries occur. This Issue Briefing looks at efforts to date to identify OHS leading indicators and the challenges involved.
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At Work article

Risk of repetitive strain injury different across gender in some fields: study

Stark differences in RSI risk for men and women in sectors including construction, agriculture
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At Work article

New Brunswick’s WorkSafeNB adopts IWH’s safety culture yardstick

Institute of Work & Health’s Organizational Performance Metric chosen after study shows firms’ scores on eight-item questionnaire correlate with claims rates
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At Work article

IWH research now has two new “applications”

Mobile app versions of two IWH clinical tools now released
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At Work article

The young and new on job most affected by heat stress: study

Study of work-related heat stress finds heat strokes, sun strokes and other heat illnesses spike over groups of days and disproportionately affect those on the job less than two months
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At Work article

HR researcher and consultant Graham Lowe saw IWH grow over 10 years as scientific advisor

Over 10 years as member of the IWH Scientific Advisory Committee, Graham Lowe has seen the Institute evolve
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At Work article

Night and evening shifts linked to higher risk of injuries: study

Higher injury rates found across age, sex and job type in rare study looking at risk levels by time of day
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At Work article

Change with the times: Chronic conditions hint at the need for tailored injury prevention efforts

Workplaces may need to tailor their injury prevention efforts to address the rising prevalence of chronic conditions, says new research from the Institute for Work & Health.
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At Work article

Female nurses working nights weigh [slightly] more than those working days

Body mass index scores are slightly higher among female nurses working night shifts (or a mix of day, evening and night shifts) than among those working regular day shifts, according to a recent study from the Institute for Work & Health. But we don’t yet know if this difference is important.
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