Occupational health programs: envisioning the next generation.

1. As the health care system changes, occupational health programs will play a key role in defining the new relationship between employers and health care providers. 2. Occupational health program development in the 1980s concentrated on treating injuries and increasing the revenues for the health care provider. 3. As employers become more sophisticated and cost sensitive, they will require occupational health programs to improve quality and control costs. 4. To succeed in this new environment, occupational health programs will need to focus on the prevention of illness and injury, develop more cost effective treatments, and use superior information systems which allow them to measure and improve outcomes.