Materials to be distributed: Two clinical cases (Clerical Worker and Auto Assembly Line Worker)

Practical Exercise/Instruction:

• Feedback to be given to participants on their scoring of ERI, JCQ and GHQ.
• Participants are asked to write up and turn in the general OSI or a specific OSI on the same person as above. Each participant is asked to write up a narrative occupational history based on all the psychosocial for January 3, 2002.

Summary:

We present a systematic approach to taking an occupational history, whereby exposures to workplace stressors relevant to the CV system are identified. This approach is facilitated by a summary flow sheet, with linkage to the Occupational Stress Index from which the information can be obtained. Four examples are provided of succinct narrative histories that could be incorporated into the clinical records. Some of the difficulties of obtaining this information from general self-report measures are pointed out. Occupation-specific OSI's are introduced as a potential solution, whereby, within a theoretically coherent framework, the variable (and potentially modifiable) features of a given line of work are operationalized to be relevant to the specific occupation, while the relatively fixed aspects of the job are identified such that superfluous questions can be omitted. These points are illustrated using the OSI for physicians (OSI-MD), which the course participants who are clinicians, will be using to write up their own narrative work histories.

Basic Readings:

(1) Belkic K. Occupation-Specific versus General Self-Report Measures to Assess Psychosocial Workplace Exposures: Dilemmas and Potential Solutions to Bridge the Gap. Workshop on Psychosocial Work Environment Assessment Issues Conference on Occupational Assessment--June 12, 2001, Gothenburg, Sweden.