Chia-Chia Chang, MBA, MPH; Adele Childress, PhD; and Sara Tamers, PhD: Advancing Total Worker Health initiatives through Partnerships, Workforce Development, and Research

During Women’s History Month, NIOSH will highlight several female researchers and their contributions to NIOSH and America’s workers.

Chia-Chia Chang, MBA, MPH, is the Coordinator for Partnership and New Opportunity Development in the NIOSH Office for Total Worker Health^® .  In this capacity she has helped bring on over 30 partners for Total Worker Health (TWH) as part of the NIOSH Total Worker Health Affiliate Program. She writes feature articles for the TWH in Action! eNewsletter on the work of these partners, participates in many invited presentations and workshops across the country to help people understand the value behind TWH approaches, and much more. She has been instrumental in building support for the science behind TWH. Her efforts have helped partners from academia, non-profits, and labor become champions for TWH in their own workforces and regions across the country. Ms. Chang is advancing worker safety, health, and well-being through the creation of strong networks of collaborators committed to implementing comprehensive Total Worker Health approaches.

Adele Childress, PhD, MSPH, is the Team Lead for Workforce Development in the NIOSH Office for Total Worker Health^®. Dedicated to the training and education of future occupational safety and health professionals, Dr. Childress works with academic institutions and NIOSH experts to determine what students need to take on the challenges of changing workplaces. As the co-chair of the 2018 2nd International Symposium to Advance Total Worker Health taking place in Bethesda, Maryland on the historic NIH Campus May 8-11, 2018, Dr. Childress is leading the effort to bring partners, researchers, and practitioners together to explore the latest research and practice in the field of Total Worker Health from around the world. The Symposium will be an opportunity for Dr. Childress to hear firsthand from participants about their training needs and current efforts for training future TWH professionals. Her commitment to improving worker safety and health outcomes is reflected in her efforts to equip future workplace safety and health leaders with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to protect and advance worker safety, health, and well-being.

Sara Tamers, PhD, MPH, is a Team Lead in the Research Program Arm of the NIOSH Office for Total Worker Health^®. With Total Worker Health considered an emerging field, Dr. Tamers’ work is vital to building the scientific evidence base behind the policies, programs, and practices which encompass TWH approaches. She led the development of the first-ever National Total Worker Health® Agenda—a National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) for TWH—focused on four domains of Research, Practice, Policy, and Capacity-Building. The National TWH Agenda will guide efforts to advance TWH initiatives for the next decade. In addition, Dr. Tamers works closely with the NIOSH Centers of Excellence for TWH to strengthen the connection between research at these academic institutions and NIOSH. Her contributions to the scientific literature and leadership on cross-cutting research initiatives will improve worker safety, health, and well-being by strengthening the evidence for the comprehensive, organizational-level approaches of TWH.

Reid Richards, BS, is a Public Health Advisor in the NIOSH Office for Total Worker Health^®.