The University of Toledo

Master of Science in Occupational Health : Industrial Hygiene

HISTORY AND MISSION

History

The Medical College of Ohio was created in December 1964 by the Ohio General Assembly and was comprised of four schools: the College of Medicine, the College of Graduate Studies, the College of Nursing and the College of Health Sciences. After years of interinstitutional planning, the Ohio Board of Regents granted approval on March 8, 1985 to the Medical College of Ohio to offer the Master of Science in Industrial Hygiene (MSIH) degree within the College of Health Sciences and the College of Graduate Studies. The first class of MSIH students was admitted in the Fall Quarter of 1985. During May, 1991, a resolution was approved by the Ohio Board of Regents for change of the degree nomenclature to Master of Science in Occupational Health (MSOH).  The Industrial Hygiene program of the MSOH degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology - Applied Science Accreditation Commission (ABET ASAC).  In July, 2005 the institution was renamed the Medical University of Ohio, and in July, 2006 the Medical University of Ohio merged with the University of Toledo and the campus formerly known as the Medical University of Ohio became the Health Science Campus of the University of Toledo.  At the time of this merger, the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine and its programs were moved from under the College of Health Sciences to the College of Medicine, where they remain today.

Mission

The Master of Science in Occupational Health degree Industrial Hygiene program is under the direct administration of the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine within the College of Medicine and the University of Toledo - Health Science Campus. A baseline requirement for an academic program at the University of Toledo - Health Science Campus is to ensure that goals and educational objectives support the missions of the institution and the school where it is administered. The Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine directly oversees the process to assure that its Industrial Hygiene program's goals and educational objectives comport with the missions of the University of Toledo and the College of Medicine.

"The mission of the University of Toledo - Health Science Campus shall be the creation and maintenance of an academic environment that attracts the most highly qualified students and faculty, and fosters the pursuit of excellence in health education, research, and service."

"The mission of the College of Medicine is to improve the quality of human life through education, research, and service related to health promotion and the prevention, treatment, and remediation of disease and disability. As a leader in allied health, the college is committed to excellence via continuous improvement involving the assessment of: learning by students and professionals; contributions to knowledge; and, service provided to the community of interest."

"The mission of the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine in the College of Medicine at the University of Toledo is to provide education, conduct research, and render service to improve and maintain the quality of life  by emphasizing wellness; recognition, prevention, and remediation of illness and injury; and promotion of health and safety."

The vision of the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine will continue to serve society across the life span by focusing on the environmental and occupational health sciences, epidemiology and biostatistics, emergency medicine services and disaster preparedness, gerontology and geriatric medicine, nutrition, and health promotion and education.  The Department will continue to develop evidence-based approaches and efforts in line with current and emerging issues and trends to maintain healthy populations, mitigate factors that contribute to stress, illness, and injury, and develop health promotion interventions. 

The goals of the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine are to aspire to:  expand student recruitment in relation to current degree and certificate programs; increase number of dual degree MD-MPH students (comports with AAMC Reporter 2007, which urges more Public Health training); increase offerings of technologically enhanced academic and continuing education programs; maintain current funding and designation as a CDC/NIOSH Training Program; increase consistency in securing and maintaining external grants and contracts; maintain existing and increase new relationships with regional health departments, hospitals, businesses,  and organizations; strengthen and/or expand its collaborative efforts with Bowling Green State University via the Northwest Ohio Consortium for Public Health; establish and strengthen collaboration with other regional and State colleges and universities,  increase integration of effort and joint projects with other UT Colleges and Departments.