Dr. Spector’s work focuses on occupational heat stress, in close collaboration with workers, community-based organizations, employers, and state agencies. Her research uses epidemiologic, field exposure assessment, intervention evaluation, interdisciplinary, and community-engaged approaches. Dr. Spector's research has been supported by Federal (CDC, NIH), State, and non-profit (The Nature Conservancy, Science for Nature & People Partnership) sponsors and has involved collaboration with the CDC/NIOSH-funded Pacific Northwest Agricultural Safety & Health (PNASH) Center. She previously served as an occupational research physician and occupational disease prevention lead at the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries’ Safety & Health Assessment & Research for Prevention (SHARP) Program, where she participated in policy-relevant research and health tracking activities.

Dr. Spector currently serves as Chair of the UW Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS). She also serves as Deputy Director of the NIH/NIEHS-funded Biostatistics, Epidemiologic, and Bioinformatic Training in Environmental Health (BEBTEH) T32 training grant. Dr. Spector previously served as a member of the NACOSH Heat Injury and Illness Prevention Work Group and the ACGIH® Threshold Limit Values for Physical Agents (TLV®-PA) Committee Heat Stress/Strain working group, co-chair of the CDC/NIOSH Safety and Occupational Health Study Section, and Director of the UW Occupational & Environmental Medicine Program. Dr. Spector completed occupational & environmental medicine training and BEBTEH postdoctoral research training at the UW and is board-certified in internal medicine and occupational medicine.