OccHealthSci November 2025 Newsletter
- Shaun McGillis
- Nov 3, 2025
- 4 min read
The latest news, updates, and events from OccHealthSci
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Working Well webinar series
Examining the science of substance use and the business case for why employees should care
Tuesday, November 18, 2025 Noon – 1:00 p.m. Get your tickets at EventBrite
OccHealthSci’s Working Well webinar series returns in November with an examination of the intersection of the workplace and substance use disorder (SUD)--a medical condition that affects physical and mental health. This webinar will highlight how the Total Worker Health® framework informs the business case for employers to embrace a Recovery Friendly Workplace approach, one that supports employees across the continuum, from prevention and treatment to long-term recovery.
Professional development
Total Worker Health® awareness for safety committees
Wednesday, October 15, 2025 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. At the Southern Oregon Occupational Safety & Health Conference Learn more and register to attend
Safety committees play a crucial role in the identification and management of different workplace hazards. This workshop helps you to broaden your understanding of all types of hazards, including psychosocial and organizational hazards that are not always easy to recognize. Participants have an opportunity to learn this from the perspective of a Total Worker Health® (TWH) approach, a concept coined and supported by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Participants are also able to relate how current workplace programs and policies might fit (or not) into the TWH approach and how this comprehensive approach can be used by safety committees to advance health, safety, and well-being at work more effectively.
Total Worker Health® 101: The basics
Thursday, November 13, 2025 9:00 – 11:30 a.m. FREE Virtual course Reserve your seat at Eventbrite
The Total Worker Health (TWH) approach brings together policies, programs and practices that are essential for advancing worker safety, health, and well-being. In this introductory course, participants will learn about:
the terms and concepts essential to the TWH approach;
the five defining TWH elements;
effective organizational implementation strategies of a TWH approach; and
ways to develop applicable next steps.
This virtual training is developed and offered by the Oregon Total Worker Health Alliance, which includes Oregon OSHA, SAIF Corporation, and the Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences, OHSU. Continuing education credits through SHRM and CHES are available upon completion of the training.
OccHealthSci Sponsored Programs
Oregon Healthy Workforce Center
The Oregon Healthy Workforce Center( OHWC) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 pilot project grants. OHWC provides the grants to projects that span the occupational health sciences and focus on topics related to Total Worker Health®. The OHWC pilot grant program is supported by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The recipients of this year’s pilot grants are:
Dr. Julia Goodman’s project titled “Effectiveness and Implementation of a Leave-Supportive Supervisor Behavior Training”
Dr. David Hurtado and Rachel Madjlesi’s project titled “Supervisory Training to Advance Safe and Healthy Work Design for Young Workers”
Drs. Heesung Woo (OSU) and Jay Kim’s (Texas A & M) project titled “Pilot Study of Drone-Assisted Tree Planting to Improve Occupational Safety and Health in Oregon Reforestation Labor”
If you’d like to learn more about the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center’s research, education and outreach, check out our recently published 2025 Annual Report.
Occupational Public Health & OR-FACE Programs
Learn more about OR-FACE, including our fatality investigations and toolbox talks, by visiting our website. To download and receive new publications including investigative reports and other OR-FACE publications, please join our mailing list.
OccHealthSci Research, Blog and Events
Stay up to date on the latest basic, clinical, and applied research at OccHealthSci, and learn about our partnerships and community engagement at the Oregon and the Workplace blog.
Research briefs
Your body clock determines when exercise best lowers blood pressure
New research from the Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences reveals that timing significantly affects how exercise reduces blood pressure. The study found that exercising around 1:00 p.m. produces the greatest blood pressure reductions, while early morning workouts show minimal effects. These findings suggest that strategically timing exercise based on individual circadian rhythms could maximize cardiovascular benefits, particularly for hypertension patients who don't respond well to medications. Read more about the research.
A new tool to build respect in the workplace: The Respectful Workplace Climate Scale
Researchers at Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences have developed the Respectful Workplace Climate Scale, the first scientifically validated tool to measure workplace respect. Developed over three years with input from construction workers and validated across 1,400 workers, the tool shows that respectful workplace climates correlate with lower stress, anxiety, and depression, plus higher job satisfaction and retention. Organizations can use it to identify specific problem areas and implement targeted interventions. The scale will be publicly available in early 2026 through Respect Works, a collaboration between BOLI, ODOT, and the Oregon Institute. Read more about this research.
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