04/06/22: Identifying, Understanding, and Addressing Occupational Health Inequities through Research

Recorded on Wednesday, April 6, 2022

Part 1 of the 3-part OEHS Health Equity Series

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Identifying, Understanding, and Addressing Occupational Health Inequities through Research

About the webinar:

Despite its roots in social medicine, over the past 50 years, occupational safety and health have evolved into a largely technical field driven by the biomedical model of health. This presentation discusses the need for a paradigm shift in occupational health research to a biopsychosocial approach as essential to addressing occupational health inequities. Examples of NIOSH research will be used to illustrate the importance of identifying, understanding, and ameliorating the impact of social and structural determinants of health on the inequitable distribution of work-related benefits and risks. It concludes with a discussion of some practical steps that can be taken to integrate this expanded approach to occupational health research and practice.

Learning Objectives

At the completion of this activity, the learner will be able to:

  • Describe the advantages of a biopsychosocial approach to occupational health
  • List three areas of health equity focused research
  • Identify how a biopsychosocial approach could be incorporated into the participants research

Speaker: Michael Flynn, MA

Michael Flynn is an applied anthropologist with over 25 years of experience working on issues related to social inequality both domestically and abroad. His interests include health equity, organizational culture change, translation research and social determinants of health. He currently serves as a Lead Social Scientist with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Heath where he coordinates the Occupational Health Equity program. He is also the project officer for a research program to better understand and improve the occupational health of immigrant workers. He has a Master’s degree in Anthropology from the University of Cincinnati and is currently pursuing a PhD in Anthropology at the University of Kentucky.

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