Dr Kevin Teoh

Overview

Biography

Dr Kevin Teoh is a Chartered Psychologist and the Programme Director of the MSc Organizational Psychology at Birkbeck, University of London. He is also the Executive Officer for the European Academy of Occupational Health Psychology. His primary research interests are around developing healthier workplaces, and the translation of research into practice, policy, and public dissemination. Kevin has collaborated extensively with the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work and the Society of Occupational Medicine, and has a particular interest in the working conditions and wellbeing of healthcare workers. He has also worked with organisations in the private and public sectors. These projects have primarily been around workplace wellbeing, management training, recruitment and retention, and safety. Kevin has published in journals such as Work & Stress and the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, and is a regular speaker at academic, professional, and public events. Outside of academia, Kevin runs a scout troop through Hampshire Scouts and tweets at @kevinteohrh.

Qualifications

• PhD Organizational Psychology, Birkbeck, University of London, 2017
• MSc Occupational Psychology (Distinction), University of Nottingham, 2012
• BSc Psychology (First Class), University of Bedfordshire, 2008

Web profiles

• Twitter
• Google Scholar Profile

Professional activities

Executive Officer, European Academy of Occupational Health Psychology

Consulting Editor, Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology

Editorial Board, Work & Stress

Professional memberships

• Chartered Psychologist, British Psychological Society

• Fellow, Higher Education Academy

• Member, European Academy of Occupational Health Psychology (EAOHP)

Honours and awards

• Special Recognition for Outstanding Contribution to Occupational Health Research, Society of Occupational Medicine, October 2023
• Philip Leverhulme Prize Nomination, Leverhulme Trust, October 2024
• Highly Cited Paper 2021 – Occupational Medicine, Oxford University Press, October 2022
• Shortlist – Best Lecturer or Tutor, Student Union, Birkbeck, University of London, October 2022
• Excellence in Occupational Psychology Research - Early Career Award, British Psychological Society Division of Occupational Psychology , October 2020
• Ronald Tress Prize, for Excellence in Research by Early Career Academics, Birkbeck, University of London, United Kingdom, October 2019
• Shortlist - Outstanding Contribution to Student Experience, Student Union, Birkbeck, University of London, October 2020
• Honorable Mention for Best Paper 2017/18, Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, October 2019
• Half-Colours Award, for positive contribution to the general life of the Students' Union or the College, Student Union, Birkbeck, University of London, October 2016

ORCID

0000-0002-6490-8208

Research

Research interests

• Psychosocial working conditions
• Work-related wellbeing and mental health, both positive (e.g., work engagement, motivation) and negative (e.g., stress, burnout) representations of it
• Workplace health interventions
• Emergency and healthcare service workers
• Patient care/ safety
• Health and wellbeing policies at organisational, national and international levels
• Precarious work and socio-economic issues (e.g., austerity, poverty, immigration, welfare)
• Underrepresented groups and non-WEIRD samples
• Systematic reviews, secondary datasets and multilevel modelling

Research overview

My primary research interests lie in understanding the beneficial and detrimental role that work has on workers’ health and wellbeing, and in the dissemination of information from the research domain into policy, practice and the public. The former represents my belief that there is a powerful incentive to use our understanding of the work environment to develop a healthier and happier society. A key focus for this is my interest in the healthcare sector, where performance of healthcare staff has ramifications for wider society as well. The importance of dissemination lies in my belief that knowledge needs to be shared to empower others. Research projects and findings should consider real-world ramifications, and effort needs to be put into translating research into practice, and into a language and format that is beneficial to the wider lay audience.

Research Centres and Institutes

• Centre for Sustainable Working Life
• Centre for Medical and Health Humanities

Research projects

Supervision and teaching

Supervision

Supervisions external to Birkbeck:

2

Supervisions within Birkbeck:

3

I welcome enquiries from prospective PhD students who are interested in undertaking research in any of my areas of research interest:

• Psychosocial working conditions
• Workplace health interventions
  
• Work-related wellbeing and mental health, both positive (e.g., work engagement, motivation) and negative (e.g., stress, burnout) representations of it
• Emergency and healthcare service workers
  
• Patient care/ safety
• Health and wellbeing policies at organisational, national and international levels
• Underrepresented groups and non-WEIRD samples
  
• Precarious work and socio-economic issues (e.g., austerity, poverty, immigration, welfare)
  
• Systematic reviews, secondary datasets and multilevel modelling
  

Teaching

Teaching modules

• Research Methods (BUOB037H7)
• Research Project (BUOB042D7)
• Work and Well Being (MOOP008H7)
• Employee Relations and Motivation (MOOP009H7)

Publications

Business and community

Media

I am happy to receive enquiries from the media on the following topics:

• NHS staff wellbeing
• Mental health in the workplace
• Workplace health interventions
• Remote working and working from home
• Changing world of work

Outreach

Selected Podcasts

• Avoidable employee harm in disciplinary processes. Psych Health & Safety Podcast. 2024.
• Working conditions, psychological distress and suicidal ideation: a study of UK junior doctors. BJPsych Open Podcasts. 2024.
• Healthy Workplaces with Dr Kevin Teoh. People Soup Podcast. 2023.
• What you weren't told about working as a junior doctor. BMJ Student Podcast. 2022.
• Avoiding snake oil in workplace health – what is the evidence base? Society of Occupational Medicine Podcast. 2021.
  

Selected 2024 Speaking Events

• Learning from NHS interventions. Keynote Address: Mindful Business Charter Annual Event
• Challenging the Norm: Taking A Systems Approach to Support Staff Wellbeing. Leading Live: Hampshire and Isle of Wight NHS Foundation Trust.
• Why workplace wellbeing interventions don't work. Civil Service Occupational Psychology Learning Event. 
• Transform Employee Frustration into High-Impact Change. ERG UK Summit: Learning Lab
• Wellbeing at Work Summit Europe 2024. Amsterdam.
• Supporting people at work with mental health issues. Reforming public policy to promote good work and health – HR and OH working together. House of Lords Policy Event.
  

Selected 2023 Speaking Events

• Understanding Wellbeing from a Systems Perspective. City HR Annual Conference
• Fireside Chat: Powering Workplace Wellbeing: The Synergy of Occupational Health and HR. meddbase
• Organisational Interventions to Support Staff Wellbeing in the NHS. NHS Employers Health and Wellbeing Network
• A systems perspective to staff wellbeing. Karolinska Institute Stockholm
• Why healthcare employers should promote health: the costs of ill-health at work. Florence Nightingale Foundation
• Organisational Interventions to Support Staff Wellbeing in the NHS. Microsoft
• Providing mental health support to NHS staff. British Psychological Society and HSJ Journal
  

Selected 2022 Speaking Events

• Organisational Wellbeing Interventions: It’s not only about Yoga and Resilience. North Bristol NHS Trust. 
• Uncertain Resilience in a Certain World. Birkbeck BEI Week Panel Discussion
• Managing workplace wellbeing – looking beyond resilience and mindfulness The Ralph Veterinary Referral Centre. 
• Organizational Psychology, Wellbeing, and Psychological Safety. Sage: Lunch & Learn Session. 
• Organisational Interventions to Support the Mental Wellbeing of Frontline Clinicians. Health and Wellbeing at Work Conference. 
• Psychometrics – What it is and how to use it. The Premier League. 

Selected 2021 Speaking Events

• Policy Responses to Atypical Work in Europe. Work, Stress, and Health. Work, Stress and Health Conference
• Embracing an Organisational Perspective to Wellbeing: It’s not only about yoga and resilience. CIPD London
• Understanding and managing doctor burnout. Australasian Gynaecological Endoscopy & Surgical Society Conference. 
• What has clap for carers done for NHS staff wellbeing Panel. Royal College of Emergency Medicine Training Day – From Burnout to Brilliance. 
  
• Job crafting Royal College of Emergency Medicine Training Day – From Burnout to Brilliance.
  
• Connecting the dots: Linking UK doctors’ working conditions, wellbeing and patient care. Nordic Institute for Advanced Training in Occupational Health Education. 

Selected 2020 Speaking Events

• Job crafting: Encouraging conducive working environments. ThoughtFull Malaysia
• Organisational interventions to support the mental and emotional well-being of clinicians on the frontline. UCD School of Medicine Conference
• Burnout. Law Care Webinar Series
• The Mental Health and Wellbeing of Nurses and Midwives in the UK. NHS Staff Council on Health, Safety and Wellbeing
• Managing Wellbeing while Working in a Pandemic. Rotary Club Zurich
• The critical needs and priorities to support the well-being of clinicians. Society of Occupational Medicine Webinar on Support the Mental and Emotional Well-being of Clinicians on the Frontlines
• Managing work stress and anxiety in uncertain times. NHS Practitioner Health Programme
  
• Managing Stress and Anxiety in an Uncertain World. Swiss Quality UK
• Healthcare worker wellbeing: antecedents and interventions. Barts & St. Thomas NHS Trust
• Mental health of nurses and midwives in the UK. RCN meeting with nursing and NHS leaders
• Job crafting for your personal wellbeing. UCD School of Medicine Conference: Occupation Stress and Burnout among Health Care Workers

Selected 2018 Speaking Events

• The Always On Culture. BAM Nuttall
• Understanding and Managing Burnout. PRCA and Edelman present: Tackling the elephant: How to Stay Sane When You Work in Comms
• Innovations Health Check: Implications for the Always On Culture. BAM Nuttall Supplier Day
• Precarious Work, Psychosocial Working Conditions and Mental Health. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (Brazil) Public Health Postgraduate Program
  
• Leading a Multigenerational Workforce: Intergenerational Panel. DukeCE’s The Human Difference: Reimagining Leadership and the Future of Work
• Impact of NHS Working Conditions on Doctors’ Wellbeing and Patient Care. Affinity Health at Work Masterclass
• Psychosocial work characteristics, burnout, and early retirement intentions in NHS consultants. Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association Conference

Selected 2019 Speaking Events

• Psychosocial working conditions of doctors: Why are they important and what should we do? UCL Medical School Evening Seminar
• Doctors’ wellbeing, their working conditions and intervening: A UK perspective. Boston University Study Abroad Programme
• The financial cost of psychosocial workplace aggression. International Association for Workplace Bullying and Harassment Research Masterclass
• Understanding and Managing Wellbeing at Work. Chelsea and Westminster NHS Trust – Wellbeing Week
• Psychological wellbeing at work. Breaking Through: Personal and Professional Development Summit
• Organisational factors and interventions that impact doctors’ wellbeing. Royal College of Emergency Medicine Training Day – From Burnout to Brilliance
• Dealing with stress in today’s world. Swiss Quality UK
• Mental health is everyone’s business. Cabinet Office