Issue:
In April 2010, the Occupational Cancer Research Centre and the Institute for Work and Health hosted a symposium to evaluate the state of scientific evidence on shift work and human health. Presentations from international experts focused on prevalence, biological mechanisms, animal studies, and the impact of shift work on worker injury, heart disease, fertility and cancer. There is a need to extend this evaluation to interventions that are currently in use or are being developed to mediate the potential risks of injury and disease among shift workers.
Objectives:
The study’s objectives are:
1. to organize a team of collaborators from research, policy, labour and management (including but not limited to the health care sector) with experience in the area of shift work
2. to conduct a web-based knowledge and needs assessment survey of health and safety specialists, labour union representatives, employers, and policy analysts in Ontario
3. to prepare an issue briefing that provides a common-language summary of the state of knowledge on the issue from grey and academic literature
4. to organize a symposium on interventions in shift work and health, with a focus on the state of scientific knowledge, workplace practices, and experiences of workers and management.
Anticipated Results:
The aim of this project is to build a team of collaborators with experience in the area from a variety of vantage points including research, policy, labour and management; conduct a knowledge and needs assessment and develop a comprehensive issue briefing on current workplace practices, proposed interventions, and knowledge gaps; and organize a second symposium on the health effects of shift work with a focus on interventions.
Investigators:
Paul Demers (Occupational Cancer Research Centre), Cameron Mustard (Institute for Work & Health), Kristan Aronson (Queen’s University)
