Aims of the course
- The principal aim of this course is to prepare medical practitioners for the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM) Diploma in Occupational Medicine examination (DOccMed) which is a qualification for generalists and other medical practitioners working part-time in occupational medicine or with an interest in occupational medicine.
- The course prepares delegates for their initial provision of Occupational Medicine services. The course is suitable for general practitioners and doctors in other branches of medicine who would like to learn more about occupational medicine.
Course venue
The course is approved by the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM) and will be delivered on-line.
Course approval
- TOPHS is approved by Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM), Royal College of Physicians, London to provide this course. The FOM Diploma demonstrates that the holder has achieved competence as a generalist working in occupational medicine.
- All delegates will receive a certificate of attendance stating that you have successfully completed this FOM approved Diploma in Occupational Medicine. You are required to attend at least 90% of the course to be eligible to sit the DOccMed examination.
Who can attend the course?
- The course is for all medical professionals (national and international) who either wish to (a) prepare for the FOM Diploma in Occupational Medicine examination or (b) would like to learn more about occupational medicine and obtain a Certificate of attendance for the course.
- The course is equally suitable for those in formal OM training posts who have to successfully complete Diploma exam by end of Year One.
- The curriculum, site visits and portfolio instruction will also be helpful for those studying to take the Irish Faculty’s Licentiate Examination (LFOM).
Format and delivery of the course
- The course will be delivered on-line over 10 days (2 five day blocks, at least two weeks apart) with daily tutorial, discussion of lectures, delegate exercises and mock portfolios.
- Some background reading will be required during the course and delegates will be invited to prepare a practice portfolio between the two weeks.
- Taught and reference material will be based upon UK practice (e.g. legislation).
Course content
The course covers the FOM syllabus for the Diploma in Occupational Medicine which is available at : http://www.fom.ac.uk/education/examinations/examination-regulations/doccmed-regulations
The main topics covered are:
- The Diploma Examination
- How to write the Diploma Portfolio (workplace risk assessment and clinical case)
- Occupational health: principles, concepts, and services
- Effects of work on health
- Legal aspects in occupational health
- Principles of occupational hygiene, toxicology, ergonomics, epidemiology and their applications
- Assessment of fitness to work
- Rehabilitation, redeployment, and ill health retirement
- Assessing workplace risks
- Health surveillance
- Risk control and management
- The physical working environment (noise, vibration, radiation, temperature)
- Absence management
- Investigation of clinical cases
- Conducting workplace visits and ranking of risks
- Tendering for occupational health services
Course Leads
The course leads are Dr Lanre Ogunyemi, Dr Alan Bray and Dr Steven Sadhra. They are vastly experienced senior occupational physicians and examiners for the UK and Irish Faculties of Occupational medicine.
The lecturers cover a wide range of specialities within occupational health.
Dr Steven Sadhra
Prof (Hon) in Occupational Health
Steven Sadhra has over 25 years’ experience in research, teaching and training in Occupational Health. He is an Honorary Professor of Occupational Health at University of Birmingham (UoB) and fellow of the higher education authority.
Steven has published over 130 research papers and government reports, he is the co-editor of three textbooks, and has written over 20 book chapters. He is the co-editor of the first Oxford Handbook of Occupational Health, which was awarded the first prize by the BMA (Primary Health Care) in 2014.
Steven’s contribution to Occupational Health has been recognised through honorary fellowships of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM) (London and Dublin) and the Society of Occupational Medicine (SOM). Steven has excellent international links and has run professional CPD training courses and workshops in different parts of the world including United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.
Steven was Director of Education for Occupational Medicine at UoB from 2008- 2020. He was the academic lead for the MSc in Occupational Health from 2010-2019. In 2017 Steven developed and ran (with Dr Alan Bray) one of the first national MFOM revision courses for Specialist Trainees in Occupational Medicine and has over 10 years’ experience in running the Faculty approved Diploma in Occupational Medicine. In 2018 he was appointed as the CPD academic lead for the College of Medicine and Dentistry, UoB
Steven has conducted consultancy work for over 20 national and international companies advising on workplace risk assessments, development of health surveillance programmes, training courses and workplace interventions for risk reduction.
Dr Lanre Ogunyemi MBBS MRCS(Glasg) DLO FRCSEd MSc FFOM CIME FFOMI FACOEM FRCPI
Medical Director & Consultant in Occupational Medicine
Dr Lanre Ogunyemi is a consultant in occupational medicine and the Medical Director for Trinity Occupational & Public Health Solutions Ltd.
His occupational medicine training and first consultant role was in the NHS. His current portfolio includes being the principal medical adviser to a number of national industries, including rail, higher education, emergency services, food manufacturing, and several small to medium enterprises .
He is particularly interested in occupational sleep medicine, fitness for work assessments, medical aspects of final employment decisions, causation analysis, Medico-legal disability evaluations and occupational mental health
He is President of the UK Society of Occupational Medicine.
He is Academic Registrar (Chief Examiner) for the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Royal College of Physicians, Ireland and a past Chief Examiner for the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM), UK.
He has had ministerial appointment to the UK Occupational Health Expert Task and Finish Group, chaired by Professor Dame Carol Black, tasked to implement a national occupational health service for small and medium sized enterprises. He is a member of the Board of Directors for UK Council for Work & Health.
He is passionate about promoting occupational medicine training and shaping future generations of occupational health practitioners. He champions collaborative, innovative and strategic leadership.
He is past president of Ibadan Medical Specialist Group (IMSG-UK), a registered medical charity that supports the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
Dr Alan Bray MB ChB DA MIOA FRCP FFOM FFOM(I) FRSPH
Medical Director of South West Independent Medical Services Ltd.
Main personal involvement within a very wide portfolio of clients has been completing clinical, policy & strategy roles. Active within manufacturing and service enterprises, seafarers, diving, tunnelling, offshore oil & gas industry.
Consultant in Occupational Medicine with clinical remit and audit role. Frequent lecturer for Royal Society Public Health and Institute of Occupational & Environmental Medicine at University of Birmingham. Visiting consultant lecturer for Amplivox courses on Spirometry & Vision Screening. Examiner at all levels for Faculty of Occupational Medicine and previous Chief Examiner for MFOM2. Currently Academic Registrar (Chief Examiner) for Faculty of Occupational Medicine of RCPI with responsibility for examinations in Dublin, Middle & Far East.
Member of both Compressed Air Working Group of British Tunnelling Society and the Diving Medical Advisory Group.
My main responsibilities involve clinical, policy, teaching and audit duties in addition to the provision of reports following workplace surveys and medical assessments. Main interests are physical hazards in the workplace. On a day to day basis my clinical role is determining the fitness of individuals (often in adverse or challenging environments) to perform their occupational role taking into account safety and performance demands as well as underlying health issues.
Course Dates
Winter 2024 course:
- 11th – 15th November & 2nd – 6th December
Spring 2025 course:
- 7th – 11th April & 28th April – 2nd May
Winter 2025 course:
- 10th – 14th November & 1st – 5th December
Unique features of the course
Course delegates have the opportunity to:
- Write up of mock case using FOM portfolio template which is marked by course tutors
- Discuss their clinical cases with occupational relevance
- Discuss and present findings following workplace visits / presentation of workplaces
- Daily tutorial questions with feedback from programme leads
- Access to programme leads throughout the course
Testimonials
- “I joined this online course from South Africa and it was a great experience, with the content well-structured into interesting lectures. The lecture notes (which were in the format of powerpoint slides) could be printed out beforehand and used to make add-on notes while listening to the lectures – very useful indeed!
I found the group to be a good size for the purpose of the training course. Live sessions with group activities ensured interaction with the rest of the group and these were alternated with pre-recorded lectures, delivered by a variety of lecturers.
The course was intensive, but very satisfying and kept to the timetable throughout the two weeks.
The tutorial questions discussed every morning were based on the previous day’s lectures and ensured retention of the information. The two mock MCQ exams were very useful to provide an idea of the format of the MCQ written exam paper. As an added bonus, multiple exam preparation tips were provided during the course.
I can definitely recommend this course to colleagues who are interested in doing the Diploma in Occupational Medicine exam!” YB, South Africa, Spring 2022 Course - “Much more in-depth course than I expected but this was very helpful. The live session were very good in bringing the lectures together and gave plenty of opportunity for questions. I would definitely recommend the course.” CW, Spring 2022 Course
- “Course leads were very helpful, organised and supportive. MCQ practice, group sessions on workplace assessments and clinical cases, and viewing the mock viva all very useful, thank you.” TS, Winter 2021 Course
- “Well thought out, structured course, good mixture of lectures and group work, tutorials and discussions helped consolidate material from previous day. There was good coverage of the curriculum and practical advice for the portfolio, viva and exam. Course organisers; the faculty and Jo were approachable, friendly and very helpful, thoroughly worth it and would recommend.” RR, Winter 2021 Course
- “A very well thought out online course in the times of Covid. I learned a lot in this new speciality and hope to learn more and progress in the qualifications and become more involved in OM here in Trinidad and abroad as well. Thank you.” JC, Winter 2021 Course
- “TOPHS have unequivocally created the gold standard Diploma in Occupational Medicine course: any prospective candidate seeking to maximise their chances of passing the examination first time must attend. The course providers are world-class experts in their fields, building upon years of experience accrued in both Occupational Medicine practice and MFOM examinations alike; they provide a well-crafted mixture of lectures, practical tutorials and interactive discussion. They have truly perfected the art of teaching for lifelong Occupational Medicine learning whilst ensuring that essential content covered will specifically help you pass the DOccMed examination as well. Undertaking mock MCQ examinations and marked mock portfolio cases were the best way to prepare for the real examination. The course administrators and leads were affable, accommodating and approachable through e-mail – indeed, they remain so even after the course. It has been a privilege to learn from such esteemed teachers. To anyone considering whether to book the TOPHS course, I would have no qualms in declaring this the benchmark in DOccMed courses.” UF, Summer 2021 Course
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