Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Malcolm Sim is an Occupational and Environmental Physician who leads a team of about 25 research and teaching staff in the Monash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health (MonCOEH). His main research interests include the risk of chronic diseases, such as cancer and respiratory diseases from chemical and other exposures in the workplace and community, surveillance of occupational diseases such as mesothelioma and silicosis, the health of military personnel and veterans, and the mental and physical health of long term injured workers. Malcolm is a Chief Investigator on NHMRC and ARC funded studies, including a study of cancer and mortality in coal mine workers, health effects in firefighters and the effects of heat on workers. He is a Chief Investigator on the Hazelwood Mine Fire Study studying health effects in the local community following the mine fire in 2014 and is the lead for the Victorian silicosis research program. Malcolm also led the review of the health assessment scheme for coal mine workers following the re-emergence of Black Lung among those workers in Queensland.
Malcolm is the Editor-in-Chief of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, a specialty journal of the BMJ, a member of the Editorial Board of the Cochrane Work Review Group and a member of the Synthesis and Translation of Research Evidence Advisory Group of the NHMRC He was an elected Board member of the International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH) for six years and led the successful bid to host the ICOH Congress to be held in Melbourne in March 2021. He has been a member of two Monograph working groups for the International Agency for Research on Cancer and is a member of several international research and professional collaborations and has been an invited speaker at several international conferences. He also has strong interests in education and training and is the course convenor for the Master of Occupational and Environmental Health at Monash University. Malcolm is the President-elect of the Australasian Faculty of Occupational and Environmental Medicine in the Royal Australasian College of Physicians and was elected to the Collegium Ramazzini, based in Italy, in 2018. He has received several awards, including a College Medal for Outstanding Service by the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, the Dean's Award at Monash for Excellence in External Engagement and in 2019 Malcolm was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to occupational and environmental medicine.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Emerging techniques for earlier diagnosis and assessment of severity and progression of artificial stone silicosis
Walker-Bone, K. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Law, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Brims, F. J. H. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Holland, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Sim, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Wolfe, R. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hoy, R. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Galban, C. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Murray, C. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Abramson, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Barnes, H. (Chief Investigator (CI))
NHMRC - National Health and Medical Research Council (Australia)
1/06/21 → 30/09/26
Project: Research
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Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) Exposure and Health Outcomes in Firefighters
Glass, D. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Sim, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Fritschi, L. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Steenland, K. N. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Forbes, A. (Chief Investigator (CI))
NHMRC - National Health and Medical Research Council (Australia)
1/01/20 → 30/09/26
Project: Research
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Risk factors and symptom patterns associated with PTSD in Australian Gulf War Veterans: Subgroup analysis and development of brief screening tests
McKenzie, D. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Creamer, M. C. (Chief Investigator (CI)), McFarlane, A. C. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Sim, M. (Chief Investigator (CI))
Project: Research
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The Coronavirus in Victorian Healthcare and aged care workers (COVIC-HA) Cohort Study
Cheng, A. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Leder, K. (Chief Investigator (CI)), McGuinness, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Zoungas, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hodgson, C. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Fisher, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Sim, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Forbes, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Cameron, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Kirkman, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Liew, D. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Kasza, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Teede, H. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Smith, K. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Kelsall, H. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Russo, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Udy, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hunter, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Trauer, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Russell, G. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Skouteris, H. (Chief Investigator (CI))
11/01/21 → 30/04/23
Project: Research
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Physiological impacts of prolonged bushfire smoke exposure on first responders and outdoor workers
Walker-Bone, K. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Sim, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Glass, D. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Driscoll, T. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hoy, R. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Reisen, F. (Chief Investigator (CI))
1/06/20 → 31/05/24
Project: Research
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Are mortality rates similar between jobs in the Queensland coal mine workers’ cohort?
Glass, D. C., Gwini, S. M., Monaco, A. D., Fritschi, L., Abramson, M. J., Sim, M. R. & Walker-Bone, K., Dec 2025, In: BMC Public Health. 25, 1, 15 p., 3004.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access -
Counting the costs of injury and disease to first responders as a result of extreme bushfires
Berecki-Gisolf, J., Wah, W., Collie, A., Glass, D. C., Hoy, R. F., Sim, M. R., Driscoll, T. & Walker-Bone, K., Dec 2025, In: Scientific Reports. 15, 1, 11 p., 20769.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access1 Citation (Scopus) -
Counting the costs of silicosis in Victoria, Australia, 2019–2024, with projections to 2031
Tomic, D., Hoy, R. F., Berecki-Gisolf, J., Wah, W., Gwini, S. M., Sim, M. R. & Walker-Bone, K., Dec 2025, In: American Journal of Industrial Medicine. 68, 12, p. 1105-1114 10 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
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Emergency responders’ return to work after injury/disease sustained during periods of extreme bushfires
Berecki-Gisolf, J., Wah, W., Collie, A., Glass, D. C., Hoy, R. F., Sim, M. R., Driscoll, T. R. & Walker-Bone, K., 2025, In: Occupational and Environmental Medicine. 82, 8, p. 380-387 8 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
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Follow-up of cancer incidence associated with smoke-related PM2.5 exposure due to a coal mine fire
Nayagam, S. N., Yu, P., Gao, C. X., Smith, C. L., Ikin, J. F., Brown, D., Kinsman, N., Guo, Y., Abramson, M. J., Walker-Bone, K., Sim, M. R. & Lane, T. J., Dec 2025, In: Journal of Epidemiology and Population Health. 73, 6, 6 p., 203148.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access
Prizes
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Dean's Award for Research Impact (Economic and Social Impact)
Abramson, M. J. (Recipient), Walker, J. H. (Recipient), Sim, M. R. (Recipient) & Carroll, M. (Recipient), Aug 2017
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Deans's Award for Excellence in External Engagement
Sim, M. (Recipient), Jun 2013
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Member of the Order of Australia (AM)
Sim, M. (Recipient), Jul 2019
Prize: National/international honour