Residency Program
The UCSF Occupational and Environmental Medicine (OEM) Residency prepares physicians for OEM practice and leadership roles including in clinical, academic, government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), consulting, or corporate settings.
The OEM residency provides academic instruction, clinical and non-clinical experiences, and research opportunities. Graduates of the UCSF OEM Program are currently leaders in academia, government, clinical practice, and corporate practice. Our educational program is individually tailored to meet the needs of each trainee. The UCSF OEM Program was founded in 1979, and is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) for up to ten trainees.
The UCSF OEM program is housed within the Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (COEH), a multidisciplinary research and education partnership between UCSF, UC Berkeley, and UC Davis. COEH’s mission is to serve government, industry, schools, health professionals, and the general public through programs and partnerships designed to deepen understanding of occupational and environmental hazards and to prevent disease, fatalities, and injuries. Activities are grounded in multi-campus, interdisciplinary teaching programs in medicine, nursing, public health, and related fields that educate future leaders in occupational and environmental health, develop new knowledge, and bring the resources of the University of California to the public.
In addition to the traditional OEM residency program track, which is funded through support from the CDC National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), we also offer an innovative training track focused on vulnerable workers and occupational health disparities. This track is funded by the federal Health Resources and Services Agency (HRSA) and is the only HRSA supported OEM program in the country. Trainees in this track fulfill all the ACGME requirements of our larger residency. In addition, however, this special program concentration offers the opportunity for additional clinical activities, public health field work, policy work, and other content relevant to low wage and vulnerable working populations as well as issues of environmental and social justice. Specific examples may include work with California State agencies, outreach through the Labor Occupational Health Program at UC Berkeley, field experience with the Natural Resources Defense Council, and clinical service in community clinics serving migrant and day laborers and other uninsured and low wage workers.
Program Plan/Curriculum
In the first year,our residents typically complete coursework to earn a MPH degree from the UC Berkeley School of Public Health while also participating in a weekly clinic and other clinical activities to meet ACGME requirements for four months of clinical activity per year.
The second year is devoted to a combination of clinical experience (four months), policy-focused rotations (2 months), corporate/consulting/administrative rotations (2 months), and research. Depending on the individual resident's interests, the specific rotations can be tailored to focus on future career interests.
Our residency does not include any in-house night call, and weekend obligations are rare, making it a good fit for people with families and other interests.
Residents entering the program who have completed a Master’s in Public Health or equivalent degree as well as a primary residency such as Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, or Preventive Medicine, may be considered for entry into the second year of the residency and eligible to complete ACGME approved training in one year.
A typical schedule is shown below.
| First Year | Second Year |
|---|---|
| One month of special programming (August) including industrial hygiene site visits and clinical work plus didactic training | One month of special programming (August) including industrial hygiene site visits and clinical work plus didactic training |
| 8 months of UC Berkeley School of Public Health coursework | |
| Weekly half-day clinic throughout year and 3 weeks of occupational clinical Bloodborne Pathogens hotline coverage (nights and weekends from home) | Weekly half-day clinic throughout year and 3 weeks of occupational clinical Bloodborne Pathogens hotline coverage (nights and weekends from home) |
| 2 1/2 months of full-time clinical rotations (July; mid-May through June) | 4 months of clinical rotations |
| 4 months of non-clinical rotations including corporate/consulting and public and environmental health rotations | |
| 2 months of research |
The August schedule features industrial hygiene site visits during both years of training. These site visits are an Industrial Hygiene (IH) curriculum and include a range of industrial and non-industrial workplaces, as well as environmental health site visits with written assessments of sites and their IH aspects. At the site visits, the trainees are expected to observe and record occupational and environmental hazards and the corresponding control measures. Each trainee is expected to do at least three write-ups after the site visits to summarize the hazards and risks, and to communicate recommendations. Site visits include a wide range of industries and environmental sites in the greater San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. Examples include: refineries, metals manufacturing, foundries, cement manufacturing, pharmaceutical and biotech facilities, research laboratories, sewage treatment facilities, waste handling facilities, distribution centers, food processing, dairies, farms, wineries, nail salons, construction sites, maintenance of the Golden Gate Bridge and airlines. There are 10-12 site visits during the month of August. Most of our residents find this to be one of the most fun aspects of the training.
In August of either the first or second year, trainees also take the Training in Clinical Research (TICR) Summer Workshop at UCSF which provides grounding in applied biostatistics, epidemiology, and clinical study design.
Throughout both residency years, trainees acquire skills in clinical occupational medicine through participation in weekly half-day clinics and an associated case conference. They also attend the bimonthly Grand Rounds and a monthly Journal Club. During this year, the trainees are expected to choose a research project and research mentor and work on a project that will be completed during the second year.
For more information on UC Berkeley School of Public Health Interdisciplinary Program: MPH degree requirements
We have multiple clinics where training of OEM trainees occurs during both years of the program:
- The Occupational and Environmental Medicine Clinic at UCSF/Mt. Zion is a weekly half-day clinic that provides an opportunity to evaluate complex patients with environmental or occupational health issues.
- SF Kaiser Permanente Occupational Medicine Clinic at Opera Plaza
- The San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center (SFVAMC)
- The California Poison Control System
- A multi-site subspecialty rotation that includes dermatology, pulmonary function, neurology, complementary medicine, allergy, and ophthalmology.
- The Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU).
Trainees are evaluated semi-annually based on how well they have achieved goals and objectives for each aspect of training through our ACGME-mandated Clinical Competency Committee (CCC). Each resident is evaluated based on 26 ACGME Milestones (pdf).
In addition to the CCC, a Program Evaluation Committee (PEC) assesses all of the components of the curriculum including rotations and coursework. Both the CCC and the PEC report to the Residency Advisory Committee that meets two times each year.
Research Training
Scholarly work is a vital element of our program. The program seeks trainees who will advance scientific knowledge with the goal of recognizing and preventing occupational and environmental disease. We work with our residents to identify a research mentor and to successfully complete a project. Dr. Matt Gribble is our principal research mentor, and there are a large number of supporting and core faculty members who sponsor trainee research activities.
How to Apply
To be eligible to enter our program, physicians must complete at least a one-year ACGME-accredited internship (PGY 1) year. Medical students may directly match into our program, but must also match in (and complete) a PGY 1 year elsewhere. Several PGY1 programs exist in the San Francisco Bay Area. We also welcome physicians who have completed a full or partial residency and who are seeking to change careers. Our program uses ERAS to screen and rank applicants. We have different tracks for those seeking to match directly out of medical school, those who have completed all or part of a residency, and those who already have an MPH.
Please feel free to contact us for more information!