Nearly 900 occupational and environmental medicine (OEM) professionals attended the 2009 American Occupational Health Conference (AOHC^®), held April 26-29, in San Diego. Participants from across the globe – Canada, Nigeria, Oman, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Finland, England, China, Romania, Belgium, Japan, Egypt, Brazil, Germany, Peru, Bermuda, Mexico, and Korea – joined their U.S. colleagues.
(Click here for the AOHC slide show.)

The entire conference was housed under one roof at the Manchester Grand Hyatt, a beautiful hotel along San Diego’s waterfront. This ideal location allowed attendees to enjoy easy access to all activities! A step out the back door brought fresh sea breezes, harbor views, and more amenities with Seaport Village shops, restaurants and boardwalk within easy reach – all while enjoying the 70° weather for which San Diego is well known!

“Congratulations on a wonderful and organized conference held at a
location where we did not have to walk miles to get to the next class!”

WHAT A PLAN!
Participants gave this year’s conference rave reviews, thanks to the members of the AOHC Planning Committee who did an outstanding job! Members were Chair, Ellyn McIntosh, MD, assisted by Track Chairs Drs. Dean Baker, Kevin Byrne, Harold Haase, Leslie Israel, and Erik Won. Other committee members were Lucinda Brown; Denece Kesler, MD; Patrick Laraby, MD; Walter Newman, Jr., MD; Ruben Oliver, MD; Mark Russi, MD; and Melanie Swift, MD. Drs. Robert Orford, Anthony Burton, Warner Hudson, Pamela Hymel, Christopher Jankosky, and Mark Roberts served on the Advisory Team.

“Excellent conference – best AOHC in years!”

EDUCATIONAL OFFERINGS

AOHC presented attendees with numerous educational opportunities. The 8 pre-conference courses – HPM Clinic, MRO Advanced, MRO I Comprehensive, Basic Curriculum, Board Review, AMA Guides Intensive, Medical Center Occupational Health and Safety, and Practice Guidelines – were very well received. The 14 meal sessions, more than 40 educational sessions, and 2 worksite visits (USNS Mercy Hospital Ship and the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant) provided a variety of choices for everyone.

“Overall an excellent conference – appreciate continued and expanded lectures on incorporating
wellness into our settings (corporate, governmental and present practice settings).”  

And, in an effort to go as “green” as possible, conference handouts were made available to participants on line prior to AOHC through ACOEM’s web site, while a complimentary CD-Rom of the handouts was provided to attendees in their registration packets.

“I enjoyed having the handouts on the CD. I highly recommend this again in the future!”

“The extra swine flu update amid the crisis was superb. Thanks to the president and team for putting it together!”

“This was a superb and thought-provoking presentation!”

NETWORKING AND SOCIAL OPPORTUNITIES 

In addition to the educational opportunities, AOHC 2009 offered attendees frequent chances to network. A Sunday morning complimentary informal New Member Breakfast afforded new members a chance to learn how to become more active in the College. About 65 attendees were able to network with current members who were designated representatives of particular areas of interest, such as special interest sections, Fellowship, etc. This get-together went over so well that the staff had to “shoo” everyone out at 8:30am for fear that they would miss the conference’s Opening Session!

A President’s Reception for Fellows, the Past Presidents’ Dinner, the Exhibit Opening Reception, and numerous other committee, council, section meetings, and other get-togethers provided plenty of opportunity to spend quality time with colleagues, and to make new and renew old friendships. At the President’s Reception, Kerry Parker, Executive Director of the Western Occupational and Environmental Medical Association (WOEMA), and Drs. Dean Gean and Jennifer Christian received the 2009 President’s Awards.

The Exhibit Opening Reception on Sunday evening featured 50 exhibitors and nearly 50 poster presentations. The Exhibit Hall was open all day Monday for further perusal by conference attendees. Door prizes were given out and included complimentary registration for AOHC 2010 and complimentary hotel nights at the AOHC 2010 property – Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando. The Grand Prize – a Kindle – was presented at Tuesday’s Membership Meeting.

Social program highlights included Monday evening’s San Diego Zoo tour and dinner which proved to be a “roaring” success. Rumor has it that one of our past presidents led a rendition of “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” on the bus ride back to the hotel! Yachting around San Diego Bay was a beautiful way to spend Tuesday evening. Several small groups of 6 enjoyed this sailing activity, although we heard that with a chill in the air and calm conditions, sweaters and the use of a few motors were in order!

“Conference staff very pleasant and helpful – thanks!”

OPENING SESSION – AWARDS CEREMONY AND SAPPINGTON LECTURE  

ACOEM President, Robert R. Orford, MD, welcomed AOHC participants to the Sunday morning Opening Session. Dr. Orford then introduced Dr. Roman Kownacki, MD, who as WOEMA’s Chairman of the Board, welcomed attendees to San Diego on behalf of the component society. Agenda highlights included the presentation of ACOEM’s annual awards and the keynote C.O. Sappington Memorial Lecture which serves as a forum from which to address major issues in the field of OEM. 

William S. Knudsen Award – John Howard, MD. The highest award in OEM, the Knudsen Award recognizes an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the field. Dr. Howard was cited for his leadership as Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) from 2002 to July 2008. During his tenure, he established the Research to Practice Program and provided access to NIOSH research through electronic communications. 

Meritorious Service Award – Reynolds B. Brissenden III, MD. This award recognizes an ACOEM member who has provided laudable service to the College. It was presented to Dr. Brissenden for his many years of service, particularly as chair of the Board of Examiners for Fellowship. He also served as a member of the Board of Directors and of the House of Delegates, as well as the Ergonomics Committee, the Committee on Councils, and the Council on International OEM. He celebrates 40 years of College membership in 2010! 

Robert A. Kehoe Award of Merit – This award is presented annually to those individuals who have shown distinction in and made significant contributions to OEM. Drs. Elizabeth Genovese and Philip Harber were selected to receive this year’s Kehoe Award. 

Elizabeth Genovese, MD, Medical Director of IMX Medical Management Services, Bala Cynwyd, Pa., was cited for her commitment to the principles of evidence-based medicine as exemplified through her work on the ACOEM Occupational Medicine Practice Guidelines, specifically as a lead author of the revised Chronic Pain chapter and member of the Spine Panel. Philip Harber, MD, Professor of Occupational and Environmental Medicine at UCLA, was cited for his significant academic contributions in the area of artificial intelligence/intelligent databases, occupational respiratory epidemiology, health services models, and occupational ergonomics. 

Adolph G. Kammer Merit in Authorship Award – This award recognizes an outstanding article published in JOEM. This year’s recipients were from Finland and the U.K. and unable to attend AOHC. Sakari Suominen, MD, Jussi Vahtera, MD, Katariina Korkeila, MD, Hans Helenius, MSc, Mika Kivimäki, PhD, and Markku Koskenvuo, MD, were cited for their article Job Strain, Life Events, and Sickness Absence: A Longitudinal Cohort Study in a Random Population Sample which appeared in the September 2007 issue of JOEM, and examined job strain and adverse life events and their co-occurrence as predictors of sickness absence. 

C. O. Sappington Memorial Lecture  

This year’s Sappington Lecture – How the Age Wave Will Transform Health and Healthcare – was delivered by Ken Dychtwald, PhD, founding President/CEO of Age Wave, a firm that guides Fortune 500 companies and government groups in product and service development for mature adults. Dr. Dychtwald is a psychologist, gerontologist, documentary filmmaker, and author of 15 books on aging-related issues. His rousing presentation thoroughly engaged the audience. 

“Very thought-provoking presentation and a very entertaining speaker!” 

HIGHLIGHTS FROM ACOEM’S ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING  

Colleagues gathered Tuesday, April 28, for ACOEM’s Annual Membership Meeting. The luncheon meeting was open to all members at no charge. The afternoon’s agenda included the Fellowship Ceremony, a presentation by the President of the Society of Occupational Medicine, a Bylaws Vote, presentation of the ACOEM Outstanding Achievement Awards, installation of ACOEM’s new Board of Directors, and recognition of the new House of Delegates’ officers. 

Elevation of 2009 Class of Fellows – Twenty-five members were elevated to Fellowship, the highest class of membership within ACOEM. The majority of new Fellows were able to attend and be recognized in person for their achievement. 

AN ARRAY OF ANCILLARY ACTIVITIES

The 86^th Session of the House of Delegates Meeting was held Friday, April 24, where William Buchta, MD, formally took office as Speaker of the House. Drs. Alan Engelberg, and Daniel Janiga also were installed as Speaker-Elect and Recorder, respectively. Seven resolutions were approved and have been sent to the ACOEM Board of Directors for discussion at the summer Board meeting. Incoming ACOEM President, Pam Hymel, MD, along with Ron Loeppke, MD, spoke on “The Role of OM in the New(est) Era of Health Care Reform.” Guests from the Society of Occupational Medicine, Hillary Todd and Dr. Malcolm Braithwaite, joined in on House activities for the day. A special HOD award was presented to Reynolds Brissenden, MD, for his many years of service as an HOD delegate. The culmination of the day was the annual “Rag Tag” Dinner held at the nearby Trattoria La Strada – a good time was had by all!

“Thank you – it was an excellent, enjoyable conference!” 

Mobiltape offers all recorded sessions in MP3 format on CD-Rom plus an additional CD-Rom of all available presentation handouts in PDF format. Individual sessions may also be purchased as MP3 downloads. CME is NOT available with this option.  

As a separate item, AOHC session handouts on CD (no audio) are available from ACOEM’s on-line Product Catalog. CME is NOT available with this option. Note, not all speakers submitted handouts. 

Special thanks and acknowledgment to the official AOHC photographer – Rich Schmitt of Los Angeles, Calif. Unless otherwise indicated, all photos by Rich Schmitt Photography.