Exam Structure
Your MFOM portfolio needs to show you can apply the principles of occupational medicine in a clinical setting and critically reflect on the medical condition and the occupational context.
You are required to submit five clinical cases and five projects.
MFOM Portfolio case requirements - clinical cases
You are required to submit five clinical cases that you personally managed, of which two are injury-related. The cases must relate to occupational medicine and cannot have been carried out in general medical practice. The total word count of your clinical cases should not exceed 7,500 words (1,500 words per case). You will be penalised if you exceed the allowed word count.
Your clinical cases should contain:
- A title, for example, Occupational Asthma
- Patient history, including occupational history
- Clinical examination
- Investigation and results
- Diagnosis and treatment
- Case management, emphasising occupational health management and prevention
- Follow up
- Discussion
- References
In your case management description, be sure to consider aspects of rehabilitation, legal context, task analysis, communication to the employer, and their response. The case discussion is important and should include an appraisal covering the association between the clinical condition and its occupational context. In addition, issues such as causation and options for management should be discussed. You must carry out a relevant literature review in regard to the case and all citations should be referenced according to the Vancouver convention.
MFOM Portfolio case requirements - projects
You are required to submit five workplace projects. Your workplace projects should not exceed 7,500 words in total (1,500 words per project) and must cover the following:
- Two walk-through surveys of the workplace
These should include a detailed hazard survey or risk assessment and relevant interpretation with recommendations. Marks will be allocated as indicated in the provided templates. The walk-through surveys should be numbered Projects 1 and 2. Display screen equipment assessments are not allowed.
Workplace assessments must not be related to a medical facility. Candidates need to look outside the clinical and associated administrative environment and concentrate on basic non-medical work processes.
- Three projects relating to policy development, audits or improvements in occupational health matters
The remaining three documented projects must be in relation to policy development, audits and projects concerning improvements in occupational health matters. You must demonstrate considerable personal involvement in these three projects. Simply copying an existing occupational health department document or using a Powerpoint presentation will not be acceptable.
Examples of acceptable projects:
- Formal audit of some aspect of your occupational health practice
- An example of how your practice influenced change in an organisation
- An example of your development of a policy, guidelines or operational procedures in your occupational health department
- Your own choice of a topic relevant to current occupational health practice, excluding projects listed above. For example, impact of pandemic influenza in an organisation, introduction of a computer system into an occupational health department, or the role of occupational health in managing sickness absence
Relevant literature should be cited and all citations should be referenced according to the Vancouver convention.
The projects, numbered 1 to 5, should contain:
- Title of the project
- Introduction
- Description of the project
- Discussion
- References
Finalising your portfolio
Your portfolio must be written in plain English, using the active voice whenever possible. In addition to a table of contents, you should include a brief curriculum vitae (as a separate document) including details of your current occupational health commitments. This will not be included in the total word count.
Declaration
You must also include the Declaration Form as part of your submission, the form can be found HERE.
Formatting
Incorrectly formatted portfolios will be rejected. Your portfolio should be formatted as follows:
- The margins should be 2.5cm
- Either 1.5 or double line spacing
Marks are awarded for presentation so you are strongly advised to review and proofread your work prior to submission. You must respect the normal rules of citation practice. A random selection of portfolios will be tested for plagiarism.
View a sample MFOM portfolio that was approved by the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (PDF, 512kb)
Submitting your portfolio
You are required to submit an electronic copy of your portfolio via the online application. The electronic copy should be in a Word document or PDF file format without password protection. Each case/project must be uploaded as an individual document. Your name should not be included in the document. The file name should be in the format "RCPI ID - Case x"; this text should also be included as a header in the document. Applications will not be accepted until files in this format have been submitted. From 2022, we do not require a printed hard copy of the portfolio.