Preventive Medicine Physicians

social interests patient information injury document disease risk measures history group

Occupational Medicine Physician, Occupational Physician, Public Health Officer, Public Health Physician

What they do:
Apply knowledge of general preventive medicine and public health issues to promote health care to groups or individuals, and aid in the prevention or reduction of risk of disease, injury, disability, or death. May practice population-based medicine or diagnose and treat patients in the context of clinical health promotion and disease prevention.
On the job, you would:
  • Direct or manage prevention programs in specialty areas such as aerospace, occupational, infectious disease, and environmental medicine.
  • Identify groups at risk for specific preventable diseases or injuries.
  • Direct public health education programs dealing with topics such as preventable diseases, injuries, nutrition, food service sanitation, water supply safety, sewage and waste disposal, insect control, and immunizations.

Knowledge

Health

  • medicine and dentistry
  • therapy and counseling

Arts and Humanities

  • English language

Math and Science

  • biology
  • psychology

Safety and Government

  • law and government

Skills

Basic Skills

  • reading work related information
  • thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem

Problem Solving

  • noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it

People and Technology Systems

  • thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
  • measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it

Abilities

Verbal

  • communicate by speaking
  • listen and understand what people say

Ideas and Logic

  • make general rules or come up with answers from lots of detailed information
  • notice when problems happen

Visual Understanding

  • see hidden patterns
  • quickly know what you are looking at

Memory

  • remember words, numbers, pictures, or steps

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include helping people, teaching, and talking.

They do well at jobs that need:

  • Integrity
  • Analytical Thinking
  • Dependability
  • Adaptability/Flexibility
  • Concern for Others
  • Attention to Detail

Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Analytical or scientific software

  • SAS Hot Technology
  • The MathWorks MATLAB Hot Technology

Presentation software

  • Microsoft PowerPoint Hot Technology

Data base user interface and query software

  • Database software
  • Microsoft Access Hot Technology

Education

Education: (rated 5 of 5)
post-doctoral training or
doctoral degree
usually needed

Get started on your career:

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Job Outlook

Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future.
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See more details at O*NET OnLine about preventive medicine physicians.