Residency Program

Training

(Information applicable for those beginning training July 2010.)

Utilizing the resources of the Health Science Center, the University Health System and the Veterans Administration Hospital, plus community resources, we feel that we are uniquely capable of exposing the resident to training in all aspects of the field of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R). Our patient population is large and varied, encompasses all age groups, and includes private, indigent and V.A. patients. We have a very favorable ratio of faculty physicians to residents (15 faculty physiatrists/26 residents), which assures the resident of adequate guidance and supervision and of an optimal teaching program. Our educational capabilities are, of course, greatly enhanced by the availability of multiple other teaching activities in the School of Medicine and the other units of the Health Science Center, all of these are available to our residents, including the Health Science Center's medical library, Learning Resources Center and demand access television.

The Department of Rehabilitation Medicine offers an accredited four- year residency training program, providing both 36 months of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation training and the fundamental clinical skills year required by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

The 12 months off of the Rehabilitation Medicine service is distributed through the first two years of training. The first year of the program is structured to consist of six months of Rehabilitation Medicine inpatient service, four months of Internal Medicine, one month of Neurosurgery, and a one month Rheumatology rotation. Rotations during the second year of training consist of six months of Rehabilitation Medicine, two months of Geriatric Medicine, two months of Orthopaedics, and two months of Spinal Cord Injury Medicine. In this format, every resident is identified from the beginning as a Rehabilitation Medicine resident. The non-PM&R year is structured in a manner which we feel will be most beneficial to the resident during the remainder of his/her training and subsequent practice.

Third and fourth year residents perform Inpatient and Outpatient consults and gain experience in Musculoskeletal and Sports Medicine, Pediatric Rehabilitation, Electrodiagnosis, Pain Management and Prosthetics/Orthotics. During certain periods of the training program, residents attend interdisciplinary teaching clinics such as Amputee/Orthotic/Neurolysis Clinic, Spine Clinic, Musculoskeletal Clinic, Neuro Rehab Clinic, Spinal Cord Injury Clinic, Cardiac Rehabilitation Clinic, Pediatric Spasticity Clinic, Pediatric Burn Clinic, Spina Bifida Clinic, and Pain Clinic. In addition residents attend an outpatient rehabilitation continuity clinic. Intensive instruction and experience are given in electrodiagnostic medicine test procedures.