Illness/injury prevention
IWH has a long history of conducting research to provide practical guidance to employers, workers, OHS professionals and regulators about what works and what doesn’t in injury or illness prevention. This research targets the injury and illness prevention practices of workplaces, as well as the programs developed by governments, health and safety associations and others to support and motivate workplaces to adopt effective practices.
Featured
Research Highlights
Workers with COVID-19 had better return-to-work rates than others during the pandemic
During the pandemic, workers who contracted COVID-19 from work had better return-to-work rates 18 months later than those with other conditions. Most traditional return-to-work factors, however, did not explain the difference in rates.
Published: July 14, 2026

IWH Speaker Series
How new businesses get their start in workplace health and safety: implications for research and policy
Published: April 21, 2026
Journal article
Journal article
Examining the psychometric properties of the occupational stress injury resiliency tool with comparison of concurrent, and predictive validity with other leading indicators of work-related psychological conditions
Published: Annals of Work Exposures and Health, August 2026
Research Highlights
Workers with COVID-19 had better return-to-work rates than others during the pandemic
During the pandemic, workers who contracted COVID-19 from work had better return-to-work rates 18 months later than those with other conditions. Most traditional return-to-work factors, however, did not explain the difference in rates.
Published: July 2026
Journal article
Journal article
Multidimensional social exposure clusters and incident multimorbidity in a population-based cohort
Published: American Journal of Epidemiology, July 2026
Project
Project
Understanding the business impacts of prevention activities in Ontario: A strategic data capacity and evaluation opportunity
This project aims to develop data and researcher capacity that will generate evidence on the broader economic business impacts of prevention activities and evaluate future prevention programs and interventions that are supported by the WSIB, and the provincially-funded health and safety associations, to make Ontario the best and safest place to work.
Status: Ongoing
Journal article
Journal article
Interaction in OHS research knowledge transfer: a rapid review
Published: Safety Science, June 2026
Journal article
Journal article
Are there differences in return-to-work experiences for workers who acquired COVID-19 at work compared to workers who sustained a non-COVID-19 work-related injury or illness?
Published: Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, June 2026
IWH in the media
Strengthening workplace safety for small business workers
Small businesses often experience higher worker injury and fatality rates than large organizations in the same sector due to limited health and safety knowledge and resources. A recent study conducted by the Institute for Work & Health (IWH) addressed gaps in research on new businesses – often classified as small businesses – and occupational health and safety (OHS).
Published: Workers Health & Safety Centre, May 2026
Journal article
Journal article
Implementation of post-traumatic stress injury programs in Alberta first responder organizations: a qualitative study
Published: Disability & Rehabilitation, May 2026
Journal article
Journal article
Integrating occupational health and safety into the artificial intelligence system life cycle
Published: American Journal of Industrial Medicine, May 2026
IWH in the media
New small businesses often lack basic safety management, IWH study finds.
About 100,000 businesses are created in Canada each year that will employ workers. Many of these new firms are small and staffed by short‑tenure employees, two factors linked to higher injury risk. But as Shane Mercer reports, in an IWH study sample, only a tenth has put in place all available safety measures, while as many as a quarter has implemented none.
Published: Canadian Occupational Safety, April 2026