SWCOEH 2021 Year in Review: Occupational Medicine Journal Club
The Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (SWCOEH) supports research, education, and outreach in occupational and environmental health. In 2021, the Southwest Center continued its ongoing support of research and discussion in the fields of Occupational, Safety and Environmental Health.
In addition to the Industrial Hygiene (IH) Seminar Series, another longtime example of this is the SWCOEH Occupational Medicine Journal Club. For an inside look at the OM Journal Club in 2021, and what to expect in the future, the SWCOEH surveyed attendees of the Journal Club.
“Journal Club is a great event in which researchers gather to criticize and discuss the evidence-based research of recent publications from peer-reviewed journals,” said Ghuwaya Alnuaimi, a PhD student in Public Health at UAE University. “I enjoyed the social atmosphere in the Journal Club that makes the discussion simple and easy.”
Alnuaimi’s experience is similar to Dr. Montse Cortijo Sarda, a 25-year veteran of occupational safety and healthy. Her experience includes 15 years in a Spanish prevention service, providing occupational risk prevention services to various companies as well as 10 years in insurance, reviewing occupational disease and accidents at work and a role as head of care management.
“I would highly recommend Journal Club to a friend,” Dr. Cortijo said. “They are interesting and well-prepared sessions on very specific topics that provide wisdom to a very, very broad specialty. They provide an arena to interact with colleagues in your specialty.”
The tangible learning experiences available within Journal Club meetings are evident.
“The Journal Club enhances learning,” Alnuaimi added. “I learn how to find the confounders in the variables as well as how to address them and control those confounders with specific adjustment in identifying the outcomes.”
Alnuaimi would recommend the Journal Club to healthcare students and professionals, particularly those with an interest in biostatistics.
“I strongly encourage healthcare professionals who wish to dedicate their research skills and knowledge join the Journal Club meetings,” Alnuaimi said. “It will give them critical appraisal skills and answer questions regarding biostatistics.”
Journal Club is a in-person event (temporarily virtual due to COVID-19) which takes place on the third Thursday of the month from 7–8 p.m. and is open to the public. If you would like to attend, email [email protected] to be added to the distribution list.
The SWCOEH provides a variety of graduate-level training opportunities for occupational and environmental health professionals through our industrial hygiene, occupational and environmental medicine, occupational epidemiology, and Total Worker Health® academic training programs. For more information, visit the SWCOEH website, and contact the SWCOEH Continuing Education Program at [email protected] to discuss continuing professional education training opportunities.
The Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health is part of the UTHealth Houston School of Public Health