A stronger future for occupational health
The nature of work is changing fast. New technologies, shifting workforce expectations, longer working lives and intractable health inequalities are reshaping the relationship between employment and wellbeing. At the same time, employers are managing new patterns of work, rising health-related absence and demand for inclusive workplaces. Occupational health (OH) must evolve with them.
SOM provides an inclusive professional home and trusted voice for the OH community. Connecting people across disciplines and career stages, providing a wealth of resources for continuing professional development, whilst turning evidence into better outcomes for workers and organisations. This supports the Council’s mission of providing professional leadership and expertise on all strategic work and health issues.
SOM’s first priority is to ensure membership is valuable at every stage of a career. Someone discovering OH for the first time needs a different kind of support from an experienced practitioner, a senior leader or a retired member who still wants to contribute. SOM’s regional groups, events and Special Interest Groups (SIGs), support that. Future plans include an introduction to occupational health e-learning package, a developing Leadership Academy and mini-MBA, and sustainable delivery of the WISE-QM quality mark. SOM is also exploring how to make better use SOM regional groups to align with the current government’s localisation strategy.
OH succeeds when it draws on the full range of medical, nursing, allied health, rehabilitation, employment, and workplace health expertise. Annual careers activity, with partners such as the National School of Occupational Health (NSOH) aims to make the profession more visible and accessible. SOM’s scholarships and awards help people progress with their OH career and continue to improve the quality of practice.
As the Council does, by connecting professional groups rather than keeping them in separate lanes, SOM aims to support a multidisciplinary workforce equipped for future demand.
Good work can protect health, support recovery, and create wider social and economic value. That case must be heard more clearly in government, the NHS, business, and public debate. SOM works with the Council and other professional bodies, trade unions, universities, charities, and employers to achieve this. In particular, there is a key partnership with the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM), running a joint annual conference, providing medical appraisals, and ensuring our policy positions are aligned where possible. SOM strongly believes that the world of OH is better when we work together.
Making the case for OH is key. Sustained public relations, backed up with practical case studies, aims to make occupational health easier to understand. Coming up, SOM wishes to highlight the work of OH to support NEETS; SOM is wholly aligned with the government’s belief that the best thing we can offer young people is a first job, not a benefit payment!
SOM is a destination for credible publications. Take a look at our catalogue at the SOM Publications Catalogue here and our catalogue of webinars here. A key member benefit is access to the Occupational Medicine Journal.
Evidence has greatest value when people can use it. SOM aims to strengthen the research community, supporting the independent Academic Forum for Work and Health. SOM recently hosted a Research Priority Setting Meeting on work and health (report here). The workshop brought together a wide range of stakeholders to identify and prioritise key areas for future research in OH. The workshop was organised by SOM and was jointly produced with the National Institute for Health and Care Research and the Faculty of Occupational Medicine; The Colt Foundation sponsored the venue and it was facilitated by an independent adviser from the James Lind Alliance.
At its heart, SOM share’s the Council’s wish for one multidisciplinary community, working towards healthier work, better practice, and outcomes. Our success is measured by more people entering OH as a career, greater employer and public understanding of OH, and use of OH research in practice.
Coming up, we have the SOM Occupational Health Awards – entries for the 2026 awards are now open! Do apply by completing the form here (rules of entry here). Closing date: 5pm Monday 2nd November. Categories are as follows:
- Outstanding Occupational Health Initiative
- Outstanding Occupational Health Practitioner
- Outstanding Contribution by an Employer to Workplace Health and Wellbeing, sponsored by OH Assessment
- Outstanding Occupational Health Team
- Outstanding Contribution to Diversity and Inclusion
- Outstanding Contribution to the Development of OH Globally
- Outstanding Contribution to Occupational Health Research
- SOM Early Career Award
- SOM Lifetime Achievement Award
Winners will be announced at our Christmas Drinks Reception at the Royal College of Physicians London on Tuesday 8th December. Book your place here.
Overall, by supporting SOM members, developing the OH workforce, working with partners such as the Council for Work and Health, influencing systems around work and health, and making evidence useful, SOM will help OH meet future challenges. The opportunity is not simply to respond to a changing world of work, but to shape it, ensuring that more people can enter, remain and thrive in good work.
Nick Pahl, CEO
Professor Neil Greenberg, President