The South African Society of Industrial Health held its inaugural meeting on 26 July 1948 and changed its name to the South African Society of Occupational Health on 18 September 1957 and again to The South African Society of Occupational Medicine on 24 August 1985, in keeping with developments in the field.

During  the 35th South African Medical Congress in 1947 an announcement was made regarding  a meeting for doctors interested in ‘industrial health’. This meeting was held in  East London on 8 October 1947 and attended by twelve doctors. At this meeting Dr C J Albertyn was elected Chairman, Dr M G Wolff Honorary Secretary and Treasurer, Dr R A Mathews the Honorary Assistant Secretary with Drs A J Orenstein and H B van der Merwe as members of an Interim Committee. Other doctors that attended were Drs E H Cluver, M Meyers, F Retief, L S Robertson, WA Ryan, JHC van Blommenstein and L S Williams. The Interim Committee drafted a Constitution and convened the inaugural meeting.

The Inaugural meeting of the Society of Industrial Health  was held in the Arts Building of the University of Pretoria on 26 July 1948, during the Annual Medical Congress. The Society was formed as a group within the Medical Association of South Africa and the constitution adopted before the election of an Executive Committee with:

Dr Orenstein outlined the functions of the International Committee of Industrial Medicine of which Dr van Blommenstain, Dr Strachan and himself were members. The function of the Industrial Medical Officer in relation to cases occurring under the Workmen’s Compensation Act and the fact that the workman has the right to choose his own doctor was discussed at this meeting.

Executive Committee meetings were held every three months during which valuable codes of practice and rules for part time and full time appointments  as well as the need for lectures.  A psychiatrist,  Dr Alice Cox was invited to address a meeting on “Psychological causes of absenteeism in industry”.

At the first Annual General Meeting on 8 December 1949 fourteen members of a total of twenty nine were present and  Dr Goedvolk was elected Chairman. Dr R A Mathews was elected Chairman at the second Annual General Meeting in 1951when the Society had 33 members and 8 associate members.

Meetings continued regularly with increasing clinical talks and visits to different industries included as was the extension of occupational health practice in industry. The chairmanship rotated among those that formed part of the original group, until  1975 when Prof Albert Coetzee was Chairman from 1975 to 1982. Prof J Mets was in the Chair from 1985 to 1989 followed by Dr D Whitaker for a year and Dr M Baker from 1990 to 1993. Dr Ferdi Smith served as Chairman from 1993 until the current Chairman, Prof D Kocks took over in 1997.

On the whole the Executive Committee members all served for long periods and gave up much of their time, which all SASOM members appreciate. There were times such as when the Erasmus and Wiehan Commissions of Enquiry took place in the late 1970’s and when the Machinery and Occupational Safety Act and Basic Conditions of Employment Act were promulgated, that the Committee members worked long hours and held extra meetings to inform occupational health practitioners and employers of the implications.

The name South African Society of Occupational Medicine (SASOM) was adopted in 1985 and the logo has been registered with the Bureau of Heraldry in 2008.

In 2009 SASOM presented the 29th Triennial International Commission on Occupational Health Congress in Cape Town. Known as ICOH2009, it was the first of these prestigious five-day Congresses on Sub-Saharan soil and a great success.

Jenny Acutt