Thomas Tenkate

Dr. Thomas Tenkate is the director of the School of Occupational and Public Health. He previously served as the director of the school from 2011 to 2020. Dr. Tenkate also served as interim director of the School of Early Childhood Studies from 2022-23.

Prior to his time at Toronto Metropolitan University, he worked at the Queensland University of Technology School of Public Health in Australia. Dr. Tenkate has been in academia since 2003. He has also worked in industry, which included 10 years with the Queensland Department of Health.

Originally qualified as an environmental health officer, Dr. Tenkate also has qualifications in occupational health and safety (specifically occupational hygiene), management, education and risk management, including a Doctor of Public Health from the University of Alabama in Birmingham.

He has been active in a range of professional associations, including Environmental Health Australia (the Australian equivalent of the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors), where he was on state and national executive for many years, and from 2009 to 2011 served as national president. Dr. Tenkate has also consulted with legal firms, government agencies, old-age facilities and schools in the areas of food safety, environmental health, occupational exposure assessment and risk management.

His main area of research is risk assessment and risk management of environmental and occupational exposures, including human exposure and health risks from ultraviolet (UV) radiation.

• OHS 319: Health Effects of Radiation (2012 to 2018)
• POH 100: Professional Practice (current)
• OHS 301: Biological Agents (current)

Research interests:

• Sun safety for outdoor workers (external link) 
• UV radiation exposure of workers and the public
• Human health risk assessment
• Online learning and alternative teaching approaches
• Chemical hazard and risk assessment
• Psychological health and safety

Research projects:

• Year: 2021-2022
• Role: Principal Investigator
• Funded by: Innovation at Work grant, WorksafeBC

Project: eCHAP-Risk: chemical risk assessment software tool for SMEs

• Year: 2020-2021
• Role: Principal Investigator
• Funded by: Innovation at Work Grant, WorksafeBC

Project: Tailored sun safety messages for outdoor workers

• Year: 2019 – 2020
• Role: Co-investigator
• Funded by: Innovation at Work Grant, Worksafe BC

Project: Diesel Engine Exhaust Exposure in the Ontario Construction Industry

• Year: 2018-2020
• Role: Co-investigator
• Funded by: Ontario Ministry of Labour, Occupational Health, Safety and Prevention Innovation Program

Project: Online Learning Modules to Support Workplace Mental Health for First Responders and Management

• Year: 2018-2020
• Role: Co-investigator
• Funded by: Ontario Ministry of Labour, Occupational Health, Safety and Prevention Innovation Program

Project: Workplace Safety and Prevention Partnerships and Ladder to Degree

• Year: 2018-2019
• Role: Co-investigator
• Funded by: Ontario Council on Articulation and Transfer

Project: Sun exposure in outdoor workers: measurements and monitoring

• Year: 2018-2020
• Role: Co-investigator
• Funded by: Occupational Health and Safety Futures – Research Funding Program, Alberta Government

Project: Setting Priorities: testing a workplace tool to identify and prioritize current occupational exposures

• Year: 2018-2019
• Role: Principal Investigator
• Funded by: Ontario Ministry of Labour, Evidence for Practice Grant

Project: Systematic review – occupational exposure to ultraviolet radiation and cataracts

• Year: 2017-2019
• Role: Lead Reviewer
• Funded by: World Health Organization and International Labour Office

Project: Systematic review - occupational exposure to ultraviolet radiation and skin cancer

• Year: 2017-2019
• Role: Reviewer
• Funded by: World Health Organization and International Labour Office

Project: Evaluation of Prevention Strategies for Reducing the Future Risk of Cancer in the Ontario Construction Industry

• Year: 2016-2019
• Role: Co-investigator

Project: Scaling up small-scale food processing for therapeutic and complementary foods for children in Vietnam

• Year: 2015-2018
• Role: Co-investigator
• Funded by: Canadian International Food Security Research Fund; International Development Research Centre & Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada

Project: Sun at Work: A sun safety program initiative for outdoor workers (external link) 

• Year: 2014-2016
• Role: Principal investigator
• Funded by: Canadian Partnership Against Cancer: Coalitions Linking Action and Science for Prevention 2 (CLASP2) competition

Project: Toronto Met/NCAT Course Redesign Project

• Year: 2014
• Role: Principal investigator
• Funded by: Toronto Metropolitan University

Project: Comprehensive applied research project to demonstrate the effectiveness of sun protection measures which influence high risk outdoor workers in Queensland to adopt sun safe behaviour practices

• Year: 2010-2013
• Role: Co-investigator
• Funded by: Population Health Queensland/Health Promotion Queensland 
  

Project: Enhancing student engagement through focused mobile learning approaches

• Year: 2009-2011
• Role: Principal investigator
• Funded by: QUT Faculty Learning and Teaching Grant 
  

Book:

• Tenkate, T. & Strahlendorf, P. Sun Safety at Work: A Management Systems Approach to Occupational Sun Safety. 2020, ISBN-13: 979-8655436084. Available at Sun Safety at Work (external link)  and Amazon. 131 pages.
  

Chapters:  

• Fleming, M-L & Tenkate, T. Biological and environmental determinants, in: Introduction to Public Health, 3^rd ed, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, 2015, pp. 117-139.
• Tenkate, T., Fleming, M-L & FitzGerald, G. Disease control and management, in: Introduction to Public Health, 3^rd ed, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, 2015, pp. 234-259.
• Tenkate, T. Environmental health, in: Introduction to Public Health, 3^rd ed, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, 2015, pp. 260-282.
• Tenkate, T. & Schwartz, M.C. The Welsh E.coli outbreak – a failure in regulatory and professional ethics, in: Population and Public Health Ethics: Cases from Research, Policy and Practice, Canadian Institutes of Health Research – Institute of Population and Public Health (ed), University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics, Toronto, ON, 2012, pp. 123-126
• Fleming, M-L & Tenkate, T. Biological and environmental determinants, in: Introduction to Public Health, 2^nd ed, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, 2012, pp. 103-127.
• Tenkate, T., Fleming, M-L & FitzGerald, G. Disease control and management, in: Introduction to Public Health, 2^nd ed, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, 2012, pp. 224-249.
• Tenkate, T. Environmental health, in: Introduction to Public Health, 2^nd ed, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, 2012, pp. 250-274.
• Dunn, L. & Tenkate, T. Work integrated learning in environmental health, in: International Handbook for Cooperative Education and Work Integrated Learning, 2^nd ed, Coll, R. K. & Zegwaard, K. (eds), World Association of Cooperative Education, Boston, 2011, pp. 157-164
• Fleming, M-L & Tenkate, T. Physical and environmental determinants, in: Introduction to Public Health, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, NSW, 2009, pp. 93-118.
• Tenkate, T., Fleming, M-L & FitzGerald, G. Disease prevention and control, in: Introduction to Public Health, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, NSW, 2009, pp. 215-246.
• Tenkate, T. Health protection, in: Introduction to Public Health, Fleming, M-L & Parker, E. (eds), Elsevier Australia, Chatswood, NSW, 2009, pp. 247-279.

Journal articles:   

• Momen, N.C., Streicher, K.N., DaSilva, D.T.C., Descartha, A., Frings-Dresen, M.H.W, Gagliardi, D., Godderis, L., Loney, T., Mandrioloi, D., Modenese, A., Morgan, R., Pachito, D., Paulo, M.S., Scheepers, P., Schlunssen, V., Sembajwe, G., Sorensen, K., Teixeira, L.R., Tenkate, T., Ujita, Y., Pega, F. Assessor burden, inter-rater agreement and user experience of the RoB-SPEO tool for assessing risk of bias in studies estimating prevalence of exposure to occupational risk factors: an analysis from the WHO/ILO Joint Estimates for the Work-related Burden of Disease and Injury (external link) . Environment International 2022; 158: 107005
• Ziembicki, S., Kirkham, T.L., Demers, P.A., Peters, C.E., Gorman-Ng, M., Davies, H.W., Tenkate, T., Kalenge, S., Blagrove-Hall, N., Jardine, K., Arrandale, V.H. Diesel engine exhaust exposure in the Ontario civil infrastructure construction industry. (external link)  Annals of Work Exposures and Health 2021 (advanced article published online on September 29, 2021)
• Modifi, A., Tompa, E., Song, C., Tenkate, T., Arrandale, V., Jardine, K., Davies, H., Demers, P.A. Break-even analysis of respirable crystalline silica (RCS) exposure interventions in the construction sector (external link) . Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2021; 63(11): e792-e800.
• Tenkate, T., Kramer, D.M., Strahlendorf, P., Szymanski, T. Setting priorities: testing a tool to assess and prioritize workplace chemical hazards (external link) . WORK: A Journal of Prevention, Assessment & Rehabilitation 2021; 70(1): 85-98.
• Modifi, A., Tompa, E., Song, C., Tenkate, T., Arrandale, V., Jardine, K., Davies, H., Demers, P.A. Economic evaluation of interventions to reduce solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure among construction workers (external link) . Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene 2021, 18(6): 250-264.
• Rydz, E., Harper, A., Leong, B., Arrandale, V.H., Kalia, S., Forsman-Phillips, L., Holness, D.L., Tenkate, T., Peters, C.E. Sun protection use at work and leisure by outdoor workers in Alberta, Canada. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2021; 63(3): e138-e144. DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000002133 (external link) 
• Peters, C.E., Tenkate, T., Heer, E., O’Reilly, R., Kalia, S., Koehoorn, M. Strategic task and break timing to reduce ultraviolet radiation exposure in outdoor workers (external link) . Frontiers in Public Health 2020; 8: 354 
• Rydz, E., Harper, A., Leong, B., Arrandale, V.H., Kalia, S., Forsman-Phillips, L., Holness, D.L., Tenkate, T., Peters, C.E. Solar ultraviolet radiation exposure among outdoor workers in Alberta, Canada (external link) . Environmental Research 2020; 189, October: 109902.  (external link) 
• Loney, T., Paulo, M.S., Modenese, A., Gobba, F., Tenkate, T., Whiteman, D.C., Green, A.C., John, S.M. Global evidence on occupational sun exposure and keratinocyte cancers (external link) . British Journal of Dermatology 2021, 184:208-218
• Pega, F., Norris, S.L., Backes, C., Bero, L., Descatha, A., Gagliardi, D., Godderis, L., Loney, T., Modenese, A., Morgan, R.L., Pachito, D., Paulo, M.B.S., Scheepers, P.T.J., Schlunseen, V., Sgargi, D., Silbergeld, E.K., Sorensen, K., Sutton, P., Tenkate, T., da Silva, D.T.C., Ujita, Y., van Deventer, E., Woodruff, T.J., Mandrioloi, D. RoB-SPEO: A tool for assessing risk of bias in studies estimating the prevalence of exposure to occupational risk factors from the WHO/ILO Joint Estimates of the Work-related Burden of Disease and Injury (external link) . Environment International 2020; 135: 105039 
• Peters, C.E., Pasko, E., Strahlendorf, P., Holness, D.L., Tenkate, T. Solar ultraviolet radiation exposure among outdoor workers in three Canadian provinces (external link) . Annals of Work Exposures and Health 2019; 63(6): 679-688. (external link) 
• Peters, C.E., Pasko, E., Strahlendorf, P., Holness, D.L., Tenkate, T. Solar ultraviolet radiation exposure among outdoor workers in three Canadian provinces. Annals of Work Exposures and Health 2019; 63(6): 679-688 
• Reimann, J., McWhirter, J.E., Papadopoulos, A., Bergeron, K., Flynn, S., Marrett, L., Tenkate, T., Rosen, C.F., Dewey, C. A process evaluation of the Skin Cancer Prevention Act (Tanning Beds): a survey of Ontario Public Health Units (external link) . Journal of Community Health 2019; 44(4): 675-683.
  
• Haynes, E., Kramer, D.M., Holness, D.L., Strahlendorf, P., Tenkate, T. With a little help from my friends: elements of successful integrated knowledge translation collaborative partnerships from three workplace-based occupational disease research projects. Work 2019; 62: 261-278. DOI: 10.3233/WOR-192861
• Silva Paulo, M., Adam, B., Akagwu, C., Akparibo, I., Al-Rifai, R.H., Bazrafshan, S., Gobba, F., Green, A.C., Ivanov, I., Kezic, S., Leppink, N., Loney, T., Modenese, A., Pega, F., Peters, C.E., Prüss-Üstün, A., Tenkate, T., Ujita, Y., Wittlich, M., John, S.M. Parameters for estimating the national and global burden of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer attributable to occupational exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation: Protocol for a systematic review of occupational exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation and a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect of occupational exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation on melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer (external link) . Environment International 2019; 126: 804-815. 
• Tenkate, T., Silva Paulo, M., Adam, B., Al-Rifai, R.H., Chou, B.R., Gobba, F., Ivanov, I., Leppink, N., Loney, T., Pega, F., Peters, C.E., Prüss-Üstün, A., Ujita, Y., Wittlich, M., Modenese, A. Parameters for estimating the national and global burden of cataract attributable to occupational exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation: Protocol for a systematic review of occupational exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation and a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect of occupational exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation on cataract (external link) . Environment International 2019; 125: 542-553. 
• Nadalin V., Marrett, L., Cawley, C., Atkinson, J., Tenkate, T., McWhirter, J., Rosen, C.F. Assessing a ban on the use of UV tanning devices among adolescents in Ontario, Canada: First year results (external link) . Canadian Journal of Public Health 2018; 109:473-479.
• Haynes, E., Kramer, D.M., Strahlendorf, P., Holness, D.L., Kushner, R., Tenkate, T. A cross-Canada knowledge transfer and exchange workplace intervention targeting the adoption of sun safety programs and practices: Sun Safety at Work Canada (external link) . Safety Science 2018; 102: 238-250.
  
• Tenkate, T.D. Ocular UVR exposure of welders (external link) . Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health 2017; 43(3): 287-288. 
• Kramer, D., Haynes, E., Holness, D.L., Strahlendorf, P., Kushner, R., Tenkate, T. Sun Safety at Work Canada: Baseline evaluation of outdoor workplaces recruited to participate in a sun safety knowledge transfer and exchange intervention (external link) . Safety Science 2017; 96: 172-182
  
• Nadalin V., Marrett, L., Atkinson, J., Tenkate, T., Rosen, C.F. Tanning among Ontario adolescents pre-legislation: prevalence and beliefs (external link) . Preventive Medicine 2016; 91: 244-249. 
• Sendall, M.C., Stoneham, M., Crane, P., Fleming, M-L., Graves, N., Janda, M., Tenkate, T., Youl, P., Kimlin, M. Outdoor workers and sun protection strategies: two case study examples in Queensland, Australia (external link) . Rural and Remote Health  2016; 16: 3558. Available.
• Kramer, D.M., Tenkate, T., Strahlendorf, P., Kushner, R., Gardner, A., Holness, D.L. Sun Safety at Work Canada: a multiple case study protocol to develop sun and heat safety programs and policies for outdoor workers (external link) . Implementation Science 2015; 10:97. Published on-line 9 July 2015, DOI: 10.1186/s13012-015-0277-2.
• Tuyet-Hanh, T.T., Anh, L.V., Dunne, M.P., Toms, L-M, Tenkate, T., Harden, F. Dioxin risk reduction program at the most severe dioxin hot spot in Vietnam: residual knowledge, attitude and practices five years post intervention (external link) . Global Public Health 2015; 10:1-12.
• Tuyet-Hanh, T.T., Minh, N.H., Anh, L.V., Dunne, M.P., Toms, L-M, Tenkate, T., Thi, M-H.N., Harden, F. Dioxin exposure risk assessment due to contaminated foods in the two most severe dioxin hot spots in Vietnam (external link) . International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 2015; 218 (5): 471-478.  (external link) 
  
• Tuyet-Hanh, T.T., Anh, L.V., Dunne, M.P., Toms, L-M, Tenkate, T., Harden, F. Sustainability of public health interventions to reduce the risk of dioxin exposure at severe dioxin hot spots in Vietnam (external link) . Journal of Community Health 2015; 40(4): 652-659. (DOI: 10.1007/s10900-014-9980-1). (external link) 
• Rye, S., Janda, M., Stoneham, M., Crane, P., Sendall, M., Youl, P., Tenkate, T., Baldwin, L., Perina, H., Finch, L. & Kimlin, M. Changes in outdoor workers sun-related attitudes, beliefs and behaviours: a pre-post workplace intervention (external link) . Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2014; 56(9): e62-e72 (DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000000244). (external link) 
• Janda, M., Stoneham, M., Youl, P., Crane, P., Sendall, M.C., Tenkate, T. & Kimlin, M.  (PDF file) What encourages sun protection among outdoor workers from four industries? (external link)  Journal of Occupational Health 2014; 56: 62-72.
• Horsham, C., Auster, J., Sendall, M.C., Stoneham, M., Youl, P., Crane, P., Tenkate, T., Janda, M. & Kimlin, M. Interventions to decrease skin cancer risk in outdoor workers: update of a 2007 systematic review (external link) . BMC Research Notes 2014; 7:10 (doi:10.1186/1756-0500-7-10)
• Tuyet-Hanh, T.T., Anh, L.V., Dunne, M.P., Tenkate, T., Toms, L-M, Bich, N.N., Harden, F. The effectiveness of an intervention to reduce risk of dioxin exposure in Da Nang: changes in community knowledge, attitudes and prevention practices after 2.5 years. Vietnam Journal of Public Health (English Edition) 2013; 1(1): 12-21
• Tuyet-Hanh T.T., Vu-Anh L., Ngoc-Bich N., & Tenkate T. Environmental Health Risk Assessment of Dioxin Exposure through Foods in a Dioxin Hot Spot—Bien Hoa City, Vietnam (external link) . International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2010; 7(5): 2395-2406.

• Usha George Faculty Recognition Award, 2020
  
• Dean’s Scholarly, Research and Creative Activity Award, 2019
• Certificate of Appreciation, Toronto Public Health (for service to the Research Ethics Board), 2019
• Special Project - National Winner (for Sun Safety at Work Canada), Canadian Society of Safety Engineering, 2018
• Public Education Award (Not-for Profit) (for Ontario Sun Safety Working Group), Canadian Dermatology Association, 2018
  
• Vice Chancellor’s Performance Award, Queensland University of Technology, 2007 and 2010
• Environmental Health Professional of the Year, Environmental Health Australia (Queensland Branch), 2007