Join OccHealthSci at the virtual 4th International Symposium to Advance Total Worker Health®

The 4^th International Symposium to Advance Total Worker Health® is happening virtually this October 21-24.

OccHealthSci’s Oregon Healthy Workforce Center is attending this year’s virtual symposium and we’re looking forward to seeing you there. But before the symposium begins, here’s a sample of what you can expect from the team at the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center.

Building Capacity for a Total Worker Health Workforce 

October 22 10:30 AM-11:45 AM ET Virtual

Join OccHealthSci’s Katia Costa-Balck and other panelists for a discussion of building capacity for a TWH workforce. Workplace safety, health, and wellbeing practitioners who wish to adopt TWH practice approaches need education and training to develop specific competencies. University-based TWH Centers of Excellence deliver a range of training and education programs designed to develop TWH practice competencies. These programs include academic (credit-based) graduate degrees, academic certificate programs, non-credit professional continuing education certificate programs, and worker training. The session will present data on what programs are offered, for whom, at what level, and the coverage of (and gaps in) TWH topics across the TWH Centers of Excellence.

COMPASS-NP: An intervention for Home Care Workers with Chronic Pain 

October 22 10:30 AM-11:45 AM ET Virtual

Join Oregon Healthy Workforce Center researchers Jennifer Hess, Courtney Donovan and Ryan Olson for a discussion about the COMPASS-NP study. The COMmunity of Practice and Safety Support for Navigating Pain (COMPASS for Navigating Pain) study is a translational intervention research project within the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center. COMPASS for Navigating Pain was adapted from an established evidence-based program to address the needs of home care workers with chronic pain. This supportive and interactive group intervention was completed online over 10 weeks. Adaptations to the base intervention included strengthened ergonomic protections and the integration of cognitive-behavioral therapy strategies for pain self-management. The symposium will include three presentations that will address: (1) intervention effects on primary outcomes in the randomized controlled trial; (2) ergonomic intervention components along with participation and associated outcomes; and (3) mixed methods research related to intervention dissemination. The randomized trial will be completed in March 2025 with full results available at the conference.

Abstract Session – Implementing Practical Interventions to Advance Total Worker Health® 

October 22 3:45 PM-5:00 PM ET Virtual

Join the Oregon Health Workforce Center’s Stacy Stoffregen and colleagues for this abstract session. This session highlights innovative research and real-world applications focused on putting Total Worker Health® (TWH) principles into action. Presenters will share evidence-based interventions that address key aspects of worker well-being, including safety, health promotion, organizational culture, and work design. Attendees will gain insights into practical strategies that have been tested across diverse industries and workforce settings. Whether you're looking to launch new initiatives or enhance existing efforts, this session offers actionable takeaways for effectively integrating TWH into everyday workplace practices.

Business Showcase – Mental Health and Happiness 

October 22 3:45 PM-5:00 PM ET Virtual

Join OccHealthSci’s Katia Costa-Balck and Erin Flynn along with others for a series of presentations of the topic of mental health and happiness, including: 

• Our Minds at Work: Elevating Mental Health Through Training  

• Optimizing Employees & Mitigating Burnout through the Science of Happiness  

• Enhancing Jobsite Culture in Construction: Respectful Workplace Initiative  

• The Compassion Project for Nurses: Intersections with Total Worker Health  

• A Business Leader's Guide to Worker Well-Being

Poster Session B: Fostering Connection, Belonging, and Mental Wellbeing in the Workplace 

October 23 8:00 AM-9:00 AM ET Virtual

Oregon Healthy Workforce Center poster presenters include Leslie Hammer, Emily Huang and Krista Brockwood.

Research & implementation lessons from a work-design intervention 

October 23 11:15 AM-12:00 PM ET Virtual

Join the Oregon Health Workforce Center’s Anjali Rameshbabu for this session that highlights findings from the Communal Meal Break project, an intervention feasibility study exploring how work can be organized to integrate opportunities for social connection on the job. Responding to the loneliness epidemic, this mixed methods study examined participant preferences, leadership support, implementation challenges, and pre-post effects from a workplace communal meal breaks (CMB) pilot intervention among Environmental Service (EVS) workers – frontline workers in healthcare. In addition to study findings, this session will highlight lessons that emerged from the CMB study on (a) effectively conducting research among the EVS worker population and (b) implementation lessons for integrating Total Worker Health strategies for social connection.

Total Worker Health Spotlight – Leadership 

October 23 1:15 PM-2:30 PM ET Virtual 

Join the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center’s Dvid Hurtado and colleagues for a discussion on leadership issues in TWH.

Unlocking the Power of Outreach: Learn from the NIOSH TWH Centers 

October 23 1:15 PM-2:30 PM ET Virtual

Presented by the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center’s Anjali Rameshbabu.