Category: Total Worker Health

Want to Improve the Well-Being of Health Workers? The System Itself Must Change

  The pandemic has brought attention to the safety, health, and well-being of workers in healthcare. Recent efforts to address these issues include, the Office of the Surgeon General’s Addressing Health Worker Burnout,(1) an “Advisory on Building a Thriving Health Workforce,” from the National Academy of Medicine’s National Plan for Healthcare Workforce Wellbeing (2) and Read More >

Posted on by Michael R Privitera, MD, MS; Chia-Chia Chang, MPH, MBA; L. Casey Chosewood, MD, MPH3 Comments

Social Connection and Worker Well-being

  In May, the U.S. Surgeon General, Vice Admiral Vivek Murthy, MD, MBA, released Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community calling for a whole-of-society approach to address the epidemic of loneliness and isolation.1 Below we briefly highlight information from the Advisory Read More >

Posted on by Anjali Rameshbabu, PhD and CDR Heidi Hudson, MPH2 Comments

Mental Health, Alcohol Use, and Substance Use Resources for Workers and Employers

  The workplace is an important setting to address mental health conditions, excessive alcohol use, and other substance use disorders among workers. In 2021, more than half of U.S. adults who reported a mental illness in the last year were employed. National U.S. data show that 70% of all adults with a substance use disorder (including Read More >

Posted on by Jamie C. Osborne, MPH, CHES® and Sudha P. Pandalai, MD, PhD, MS6 Comments

Clearing Up Myths About Older Workers While Understanding and Supporting an Aging Workforce

  The National Center for Productive Aging and Work is a key part of the Total Worker Health® Program in the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). The center operates as a hub that conducts original research, fosters collaborations, and offers expert guidance to support an aging workforce. The center encourages workplaces to Read More >

Posted on by Gretchen A. Petery, James W. Grosch, and L. Casey Chosewood3 Comments

NIEHS and NIOSH Explore the Expansion of Recovery Friendly Workplace Programs

Recovery friendly workplaces (RFWs) have emerged around the United States as an important intervention to both prevent and address substance use disorders (SUD) and the opioid overdose crisis among workers. A RFW program strives to prevent SUD and overdose by creating a safe, hazard-free and healthy workplace by reducing the chance of injury and the Read More >

Posted on by Jamie C. Osborne, L. Casey Chosewood, Allison Weingarten, Jonathan Rosen, Sharon Beard2 Comments

NIOSH TWH Affiliate Program Rapidly Creating New Worker Well-being Opportunities

  The NIOSH Total Worker Health® Affiliate Program is growing quickly, demonstrating enthusiasm for Total Worker Health (TWH) approaches by employers, researchers, and practitioners. With over 55 members as of March 2023, the TWH Affiliate Program aims to advance worker safety, health, and well-being through non-funded collaborations with governmental and nonprofit organizations, including labor, education, Read More >

Posted on by Emily Kirby, BPH; Chia-Chia Chang, MPH, MBA; L. Casey Chosewood, MD, MPH1 Comment

Worker Well-being Takes Center Stage: Fireside Chat with the U.S. Surgeon General

U.S. Surgeon General, Vice Admiral Vivek H. Murthy, MD, MBA, participated in a fireside chat on the final day of the 3rd International Symposium to Advance Total Worker Health®. Dr. Murthy joined Dr. L. Casey Chosewood, Director of the NIOSH Total Worker Health (TWH) Program, for a conversation about protecting and promoting worker safety, health, Read More >

Posted on by Emily Kirby, BPH, and L. Casey Chosewood, MD, MPH3 Comments

Total Worker Health® Symposium: A Closer Look at Keynotes

We’re taking a closer look at the presentations delivered during the 3rd International Symposium to Advance Total Worker Health®. Attendees from across the globe heard from experts in the field during keynote addresses, presentations, workshops, and “bright spots,” a new conference feature that highlights successful and innovative interventions in 10-minute presentations. Presentations explored opportunities to Read More >

Posted on by Emily Kirby, BPH1 Comment

Celebrating the 3rd International Symposium to Advance Total Worker Health®

October 11-14, 2022, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Center for Health, Work & Environment (CHWE) presented the 3rd International Symposium to Advance Total Worker Health®. Held virtually and in-person at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, the symposium is the only NIOSH-sponsored event focused solely on advancing Total Worker Read More >

Posted on by Emily Kirby, BPH; L. Casey Chosewood, MD, MPH; and Adele Childress, PhD, MSPH4 Comments

What Is Employment Quality? How Can We Study It for Occupational Health Equity?

Full-time, permanent employment that offers benefits and protection has been considered the standard work arrangement, but certain jobs are moving away from this standard.  Precarious employment, for example, is characterized by insecurity, short-term contracts, and limited access to workers’ rights and protection [NIOSH Strategic Plan, 2022]. These aspects of work represent employment quality (EQ). Employment Read More >

Posted on by Kaori Fujishiro, PhD1 Comment

NIOSH Miner Health Program Addresses Substance Use and Work

  Drug overdoses have accelerated over the past two decades, and in 2017, the United States Department of Health and Human Services deemed the opioid crisis a public health emergency. In April of 2021, the U.S. surpassed 100,000 drug overdose deaths for the preceding 12-month period, marking a nearly 29% increase from the previous 12-months. Read More >

Posted on by Carol T. Nixon, PhD; Zoë J. Dugdale, MPH; Jamie C. Osborne, MPH, CHES®; and L. Casey Chosewood, MD, MPHLeave a comment

Pausas para ir al baño

Aunque los trabajadores pueden suponer que tendrán acceso a baños en el trabajo, muchos que laboran en una amplia gama de sectores comerciales y ocupaciones dicen que no pueden hacer las pausas que necesitan para ir al baño mientras están trabajando.1-6 Las pausas insuficientes para ir al baño son algo importante que hay que considerar Read More >

Posted on by Candice Johnson, PhD; Cammie Chaumont Menendez, PhD; and Doug Trout, MD, MHS.2 Comments

Work Flexibility and Worker Well-being: Evidence from the United States

  Work flexibility can have positive and negative consequences for workers and their families, employers, and society overall. [1,2] For workers, it is increasingly recognized as an essential determinant of their well-being. Workers seek flexibility to address their personal and family needs, including childcare, eldercare, schooling, and healthcare. Flexibility in terms of work location and Read More >

Posted on by Tapas K Ray, PhD, and Regina Pana-Cryan, PhD6 Comments

Here Comes the Sun! Tips to Adapt to Daylight Saving Time

Daylight Saving Time (DST) marks the time to “spring” ahead one hour for most of the United States. Where it is observed, Daylight Saving Time begins this year on Sunday, March 13, 2022. This transition from Standard Time was first enacted to conserve energy and shift the timing of our activities to match more daylight Read More >

Posted on by Imelda Wong, PhD, and Beverly Hittle, PhD, RN8 Comments

10 Lessons Learned From a Multi-Year Total Worker Health Study of Small Businesses

  Over half of Americans are employed in small businesses. Small employers face unique challenges and often do not offer the same level of safety protections or health promotion activities found in larger organizations. However, there is evidence that small businesses are committed to addressing employee well-being, but they may lack the necessary resources and Read More >

Posted on by Natalie Schwatka, PhD; Liliana Tenney, DrPH MPH; Miranda Dally, MS; Carol Brown, PhD; & Lee Newman, MD MA2 Comments

Total Worker Health Program Readies NIOSH for Next 50 Years

  As NIOSH commemorates its 50th anniversary, the NIOSH Total Worker Health® Program reflects on its past while focusing on leading the field of occupational safety and health into the future.  The past and current successes of the Total Worker Health discipline are rooted in the fundamental beliefs that work and workplaces should be safe and healthy, that Read More >

Posted on by L. Casey Chosewood, MD, MPH, and Emily Kirby, BPHLeave a comment

Santa’s Workshop Keeps Spirits Bright with Total Worker Health Strategies

Before the stockings are hung by the chimney with care, everyone in the North Pole is busy preparing for the big night. Elves build toys at an escalating pace to help Santa stock up for the holiday. Santa’s Workshop may be magical but, like many workplaces, safety and health hazards can still be present. Fortunately, Read More >

Posted on by L. Casey Chosewood, MD, MPH, and Emily Kirby, BPH2 Comments

Exploring the Future of Worker Health and Safety in the Post-Pandemic World

COVID-19 has had a profound effect on work. The short-term consequences of the pandemic, including new safety requirements at work, mandatory remote work arrangements, reduced working hours, and even unplanned furloughs or lost jobs, were unexpected and severe for many workers around the world [1-3]. Though the economy is now showing signs of recovery, experts Read More >

Posted on by Sarah A Felknor, MS, DrPH; Jessica MK Streit, MS, PhD, CHES®; and Nicole T Edwards, MS3 Comments

The Role of Demographics in the Future of Work

  The future of work continues to be shaped by ongoing changes in the workplace, work, and workforce. Shifting workforce demographics will present both opportunities and challenges for occupational safety and health (OSH). A central challenge will be ensuring the equitable distribution of work-related benefits and risks that accompany these transformations. To meet this challenge, Read More >

Posted on by Laura Syron, PhD, MPH; Marie-Anne S. Rosemberg, PhD, MN, RN, FAAOHN; Michael A Flynn, MA; Jacqueline Sivén, PhD, MA, MPH; Andrea Steege, PhD, MPH; Sara L. Tamers, PhD, MPH4 Comments

Supportive Leaders Drive Organizational Improvements and Employee Health and Well-Being

  Job stress has significant impacts on the short and long-term health and well-being of the U.S. workforce. Interpersonal conflict, lack of supervisor support, low job control, task overload, and work-family imbalance are examples of job stressors that can have detrimental health effects and interfere with the ability of employees to function optimally both in Read More >

Posted on by Leslie Hammer, Lindsey Alley, Jasmine Nelson, and Leslie MacDonald5 Comments