What is Occupational and Environmental Medicine (OEM)?
The work we do affects our physical and psychological well being. So it makes sense that
you, as a physician, consider the important interactions between your patients' health and
their workplaces or their living environments, as we do in Occupational and Environmental
Medicine (OEM). A worker's health complaint may signal an occupational or environmental
etiology, or it may translate into a disability that could limit someone from achieving their
full functional potential, or both. Therein lay opportunities for specialization in
occupational and environmental medicine.
According to the American Medical Association, occupational medicine is defined as a
"specialty field of medicine concerned with
(1) The appraisal, maintenance, restoration and improvement of the health of the worker
through the application of the principles of preventive medicine, emergency medical care,
rehabilitation, and environmental medicine;
(2) The promotion of a productive and fulfilling interaction of the worker with his work
through the application of the principles of human behavior; and
(3) The active application of the social, economic, and administrative needs and
responsibilities of both the worker and the work community.
Environmental medicine on the other hand has been defined as the branch of the medical
sciences that addresses the impact of chemical and physical stressors on individuals and groups.
Combined, both occupational and environmental medicine focus on the recognition, prevention,
treatment and management of hazardous exposures.
Few medical specialties offer the satisfaction and excitement of both treating a patient and
then intervening on behalf of a large population to prevent the recurrence of the problem in
others. In occupational and environmental medicine, clinical medicine and public health merge
to maximize the health and productivity of workers and members of the community. Medical
conditions once dismissed as "just part of the job" are now recognized and can be prevented
and treated.
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