OCCUPATIONAL HISTORY COLLECTION BY 3RD-YEAR MEDICAL-STUDENTS DURING INTERNAL-MEDICINE AND SURGERY INPATIENT CLERKSHIPS

Occupational history is fundamental for the evaluation of possible wor kplace influences on health. We reviewed 2,922 initial history-and-phy sical reports from 137 third-year medical students to examine occupati onal history collection. Overall reporting frequencies were re corded as the following: industry, 55.8%; occupation, 70.0%; specific occupat ional exposure, 8.4%; smoking status, 91.4%. Patients younger than 40 years of age and women were significantly less likely than other older patients and men to have notations of occupation and industry. Surger y students were less likely than internal medicine students to collect data for industry (41.6% vs 66.6%, P < 0.001), occupation (57.4% vs 7 9.7%, P < 0.001), and smoking (88.1% vs 94.0%, P < 0.01). The highest frequencies of notation were those for circulatory and respiratory con ditions. No significant differences were noted for student gender, aca demic quarter, or week of clerkship. Clinical occupational medicine te aching should emphasize the need to collect occupational information f rom all patients, including women and young persons.