2.9.1. Research, Practice, Policy, and Capacity Building

Notwithstanding key efforts accomplished between 2014 and 2018 by the Office for TWH, along with its internal and external partners and stakeholders, as outlined in this article, continued developments are necessary for the TWH field to evolve even further.

More research is vital, not only in the intervention space but particularly also in the area of basic, etiologic, and surveillance research. Investment in a more developed understanding of the overall implementation of TWH research into practice and policy is additionally imperative. Much can be drawn from the emerging field of implementation science for insight regarding factors that influence adoption of evidence into practice and how research can be applied to drive policy change [51]. This is relevant for the increasing prevalence of workers in nonstandard work arrangements, a population segment typically more difficult to reach. There is similarly a distinct need to translate research on known work-related risks (such as work-family conflict) and to bring awareness of those risks to other related disciplines (such as human resources). Subsequently, gained knowledge should be used to inform practice-based research. For best practices to develop in this area, an agenda for dissemination and implementation research is essential [52,53]. These developments could help accelerate the adoption of evidence-based programs and move industries and communities along a continuum of integrated practices and policies, with implications for future research and comprehensive training of tomorrow's TWH workforce.

Finally, increased attention on evaluating the TWH approach is imperative. Anger et al. (2015) published an evaluation of the effectiveness of TWH interventions and found that TWH interventions covering both injuries and chronic diseases can improve worker safety and health; however, the authors found only 17 interventions that met their criteria for review [19]. Feltner et al. (2016) concluded that TWH interventions may improve health behaviors, although the authors were unable to draw conclusions about the interventions' impact on injuries and overall quality of life because of differences in measures used [23]. Similarly, Loeppke et al. (2015) assessed seven national and international

guidelines aimed at worker safety, health, and well-being and concluded that there was promise but considerable variation in the guidelines on strategies, evidence, and strategic elements [26].
