Research findings

The aim of the Opioid-Related Harms among Ontario Workers project is to share information about opioid-related harms occurring within the Ontario working population, to enhance efforts to address the opioid crisis. Listed below are project findings, including plain-language summaries, infographics, presentations and scientific publications.

Plain-language summaries

Workers who had a work-related injury have higher risk of opioid-related harms than the general population in Ontario
This summary highlights key messages from a scientific publication comparing opioid-related harms in a cohort of workers who had a work-related injury and the general public. It found Ontario workers who previously experienced a work-related injury demonstrate higher rates of opioid-related harms, namely poisonings and mental and behavioural disorders, compared to the general population. Posted: September 2024.

In which occupations are Ontario workers who had a work-related injury most at-risk of opioid-related harms?
This summary highlights key messages from a scientific publication that examines how the risk of opioid-related harms varied by occupation and industry in a large group of Ontario workers who had a work-related injury. The findings can guide targeted prevention and harm reduction strategies for workers and workplaces at higher risk of opioid-related harms. Posted: October 2024.

Infographics

Opioid-related harms: Comparison between formerly injured workers and the general Ontario population by occupation
This infographic highlights the occupational groups with the highest risks of opioid-related poisonings and mental and behavioural disorders, compared to the general population. Posted: September 2024.

Opioid-related harms: An overall comparison between formerly injured workers and the general Ontario population
This infographic compares the rates of opioid-related harms in a large group of workers who had a work-related injury to rates in the working-aged general Ontario population. Posted: October 2024.

Opioid-related harms: Risks by occupation among formerly injured Ontario workers
This infographic highlights the occupational groups most at risk of opioid-related harms, when compared with others in a cohort of workers who had a work-related injury. Posted: October 2024.

Presentations

Occupational patterns in opioid-related harms among Ontario workers
This IWH Speaker Series presentation outlines the aims of the Opioid-Related Harms among Ontario Workers project, as well as early findings from the project. The presentation was given by Institute for Work & Health Scientist Dr. Nancy Carnide and Occupational Cancer Research Centre (Ontario Health) Director Dr. Paul Demers. Presented: June 2023.

Scientific publications

Occupational patterns of opioid-related harms comparing a cohort of formerly injured workers to the general population in Ontario, Canada
This open-access article (available to anyone), published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health, compares the incidence of opioid-related harms among a cohort of formerly injured workers to the general population in Ontario, Canada. Published: April 2024.

Risk of opioid-related harms by occupation within a large cohort of formerly injured workers in Ontario, Canada: Findings from the Occupational Disease Surveillance System
This open-access article (available to anyone), published in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, identifies occupations at most risk of opioid-related harms among a large group of formerly injured workers in Ontario, Canada. Published: October 2024.