Dateline : September 28-October 2, 1986, Las Vegas Nevada: The American Public Health Association was holding its annual meeting. A small group of friends — occupational health clinicians, educators, and advocates — gathered around the pool after attending the days sessions. They were fired up. It wasn’t a grand summit or a federal initiative. It was a handful of passionate people, poolside, in Las Vegas — the kind of conversation that usually fades with the weekend. This one didn’t.
They discussed how workers need occupational health and safety services – beyond the company doctor, services that will be separate and independent of what a company might provide (or benefit from.)
And a bold idea took hold. Why not establish an organization to do just that?
That informal gathering became the seed of a national organization that, nearly four decades later, remains one of the few organizations in American medicine dedicated solely to the health of workers and the communities where they live.
From that gathering, the Association of Occupational and Environmental Clinics (AOEC) was formally incorporated as a non-profit 501c3 organization in early 1987, with a simple but powerful overarching mission: To facilitate the prevention and treatment of occupational and environmental illnesses and injuries through collaborative reporting, research, and clinical practice
AOEC: A Network Born of Necessity
Every day, millions of people go to work in environments that carry both overt and hidden health risks — from chemical exposures, toxic dusts, infectious diseases, unguarded machinery, lack of personal protective equipment, and company policies that push profits and production deadlines over safety and health. They and others live near industrial sites or busy roadways that spew toxins into the air or they live in communities with polluted drinking water.
AOEC’s specific goals are:
- To aid in identifying, reporting, and preventing occupational and environmental health hazards and their effects.
- To encourage the provision of high-quality clinical services for people with work or environmentally related health problems.
- To increase communication among occupational and environmental health clinics by sharing information that will better enable them to diagnose and treat occupational and environmental diseases.
- To facilitate liaison between clinics and agencies responsible for workplace and environmental monitoring.
- To provide a source of data for research projects related to occupational and environmental health.
AOEC Programs and Accomplishments: A Legacy to Be Proud Of.
For nearly four decades, AOEC has stood at the intersection of medicine, public health, and worker advocacy to address occupational and environmental challenges head-on. It is an organization of both clinics and individuals committed to improving the health of workers and communities exposed to environmental hazards. It bridges critical gaps by providing training and resources for current and future OEH providers; treating and caring for current and retired working populations; assessing and addressing connections between work and the environment; facilitating a clinical network and serving as a communication hub for those seeking OEH information and care.
Here are some of its most noteworthy programs and accomplishments:
The Exposure and Asthmagen Code System
One of AOEC’s most enduring technical contributions is the development of a standardized Exposure and Asthmagen Code List, first created in 1994. Designed to help member clinics systematically identify both existing and emerging occupational and environmental health concerns, the coding system gives clinicians a common language for documenting patient exposures — enabling meaningful data aggregation across the network and supporting population-level research. This standardized database remains an active tool for AOEC members to this day.
The Occupational Health Internship Program (OHIP)
A major investment in the future of the field, OHIP is a national summer internship that places students directly with worker support organizations — unions, worker centers, and advocacy groups — to learn occupational safety and health from those most affected by it: working people themselves.
To date, 433 OHIP interns have been placed with 138 community-based organizations and unions to work on 226 OSH projects in 31 locations across the country and U.S. territories. OHIP alumni describe the program as formative, with many going on to careers in occupational medicine, public health, and labor advocacy. The program reflects AOEC’s deep commitment to the pipeline of future occupational and environmental health professionals and advocates.
Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSU).
One of AOEC’s important contributions to public health came through its long-running support of the Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSU) — a national network created in 1998 by the CDC’s ATSDR with support from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), specifically to address children’s unique vulnerability to environmental hazards.
AOEC served as the administrative and programmatic backbone for the 10 regional PEHSUs for many years. Primarily located in academic centers, the PEHSU network members have educated more than 600,000 clinicians and clinician trainees and more than 400,000 community members on health effects related to children’s environmental hazards. In addition, PEHSUs have provided over 12,000 consultations to health professionals, community leaders and community organizations, state and local officials, parents and pregnant women, and published over 1300 works related to children’s environmental health. AOEC remains an active partner in the PEHSU program.
The OEM-List and Member Communications
AOEC has long served as a convening force for the occupational and environmental medicine community through the OEM-List, a professional listserv that facilitates real-time communication among clinicians, researchers, and public health professionals across the country. This tool, alongside a monthly member newsletter and an active web presence, keeps members informed about federal regulatory developments, emerging research, job opportunities, and calls for advocacy — ensuring that AOEC’s network functions as a living, responsive community rather than a static directory.
Clinical Resources and Information
Through its Training Resource Library, AOEC provides a collection of training and educational resources for people working or interested in occupational and environmental safety and health including blogs and listservs.
Through its OEM Information Page, AOEC provides information for clinicians who see working patients and inspiration for those who may want to explore a future in this rewarding area of clinical practice. As a specialty, OEM offers a unique blend of direct clinical care of workers with public/population health. But clinicians of all disciplines find it useful to better understand their patient’s work- and environmentally-related risk factors. From obstetrics to pediatrics and on through to gerontology, these risk factors can be critical to prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.
Additionally, through its Clinic Directory, anyone can access information about how to contact an OEM member clinic, thus providing referral sources for workers and their families who need care and advice about OEM exposures and health effects.
World Trade Center Health Program Involvement
In recent years, AOEC has taken on a growing role in expanding the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program’s National Provider Network — connecting occupational and environmental medicine clinicians with the program that monitors and treats first responders, recovery workers, and survivors affected by the September 11, 2001 attacks. This work is a testament to AOEC’s role as a trusted partner in large-scale occupational health responses to national tragedies.
EPINet Surveillance System
In June 2025, AOEC expanded its portfolio by assuming oversight of the Exposure Prevention Information Network (EPINet) — a surveillance system originally created by the International Safety Center to track occupational sharps injuries and blood and body fluid exposures in healthcare settings. Since 1992, hospitals have submitted data on these exposures, helping identify patterns and drive safety improvements that protect healthcare workers from bloodborne pathogens and infectious disease. AOEC’s stewardship of EPINet reflects its expanding role as a hub for occupational health data infrastructure. EPINet remains the only national surveillance system for bloodborne and infectious disease exposures among healthcare professionals.
Advocacy and Policy Engagement
Beyond clinical care and research, AOEC has consistently engaged in advocacy at the national level. The organization monitors legislative and regulatory agendas, participates in hearings and public comment processes, and coordinates its membership to amplify the voices of workers and patients in policy discussions that affect occupational and environmental health standards.
This advocacy role flows directly from the ICOH International Code of Ethics for Occupational Health Professionals and from AOEC’s patient bill of rights. AOEC-affiliated clinicians focus and act in the best interest of their patients and communities, even when that means navigating the inherently conflict-ridden dynamics of workplace medicine — where the interests of employers and employees do not always align.
Bottom Line
Nearly four decades after its founding, AOEC stands as a unique institution in American medicine: a small but mighty nonprofit that bridges clinical excellence, public health research, worker advocacy, and federal partnership. In a field where the consequences of failure are measured in preventable illness, injury, and shortened lives, AOEC’s collaborative model has proven that collaboration and shared knowledge two of the most powerful tools available. [And full disclosure: I was one of the founders and currently serve on the Board of Directors.]
But its work is far from finished. As new occupational and environmental threats emerge — from climate-related health impacts to novel chemical exposures in modern workplaces — AOEC continues to build the infrastructure, train the next generation of practitioners, and advocate for the patients who too often have no other champion.
For workers, families, and communities confronting the health consequences of the environments where they live and work, AOEC remains an essential ally. I encourage you to get to know the organization, use its resources, and support it if you are able. As you can imagine, every dollar counts, especially when federal funding for non-profits like AOEC is under threat.
Your tax-deductible contribution will make a real difference.
AOEC stands ready to build on its legacy and, with your help, meet the OESH challenges of tomorrow. Onward together!