Conference News: Occupational health: fit for the future

Summary:

The 2025 joint annual conference of the Society of Occupational Medicine (SOM) and Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM), held in Brighton in June, highlighted a range of key themes. These included a contemporary analysis of the health of the UK’s working population, expanding and sharing OH datasets, a rapid-screening tool to identify workers at risk of burnout, workplace support for neurodivergent healthcare workers and the impact of cancer diagnosis and treatment on fitness for work.

‘The government is almost absent at the in-work stage. Statutory Sick Pay is too low and incentivises inactivity. The Work Capability Assessment creates fear of financial loss, and the focus is so often on reducing the benefits bill rather than saying we will support people staying in work and making the [necessary] accommodations.’ …

 

Conference Report by: Dr John Ballard, editor of Occupational Health [at Work]

Author: Ballard J

Tags fom - faculty of occupational medicine SOM - Society of Occupational Medicine

Occupational Health at Work August/September 2025 (vol. 22/2) pp32-37

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