Department of Environmental and Occupational Medicine
Residency in Preventive Medicine
The Occupational and Environmental Medicine (OEM) residency in preventive medicine provides two years of training in this specialty. Successful residency completion satisfies the didactic and clinical requirements to take the boards in occupational and environmental medicine given by the American Board of Preventive Medicine.
Our mission is to produce graduates who will be outstanding practitioners, leaders and educators who advance the recognition, management and prevention of illness and injury caused or influenced by agents or conditions in the home, community and workplace environment.
The Rutgers OEM program is affiliated with both the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and the Rutgers School of Public Health. Training is an integrated academic and practicum experience over the course of both years. Trainees take courses in the School of Public Health in every semester, leading to the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree. Applicants who already have the MPH or equivalent degree will be expected to take additional didactic course work. Trainees also have clinical teaching and research responsibilities. Non-credit on-site and online coursework, beyond the MPH degree, provides added depth to the educational experience.
The practicum experience begins early in the first year, providing graded opportunity for independent clinical work. Residents have exposure to administrative aspects of occupational medicine. Residents gain a variety of experiences using independent medical judgment on worker placement, medical surveillance, disability disease prevention and health promotion. Experience in epidemiologic studies and health hazard evaluation is also developed.
Research is a required part of the training program. Each trainee performs a research project with one of the department’s faculty in an area of OEM. This capstone project qualifies for the six credits of field work training required for the MPH.
The program is fortunate to be housed in the renowned Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute (EOHSI), where faculty address diverse and complex environmental issues and health problems in the fields of toxicology, exposure assessment and measurement, occupational health, environmental health (including epidemiology), public policy and public education/risk communication.
Admission Criteria
Preference is given to physicians who have completed three years of a primary care specialty such as internal medicine or family practice. In this case, the program functions like a fellowship. Under special circumstances, outstanding applicants with different backgrounds, including at least an approved PGY1, may be considered. Applicants are expected to apply for New Jersey licensure when they are eligible for their medical license.
