What Will PM&R Residents Do Next?

In Brief: A recent survey of graduating PM&R residents suggests that tomorrow’s physiatrists are a diverse group, settling in a variety of locations and practicing in a variety of settings.

This spring, the Academy surveyed 338 PM&R residents graduating in 2008 about their postresidency plans. Thirty-one percent responded. Following are some results of the survey, along with some comparisons to data collected from a similar survey conducted by the Academy in July 2007.

Fellowships

This spring, 62% of surveyed residents responded that they had applied for a fellowship.

Setting

For those who did not accept a fellowship, their plans were split between heading into private practice and accepting a position at an institution: 37% responded that they would be in private practice (group or solo), 44% would be in a hospital setting (academic or non-academic), and 9% said they would be working as a Veterans Admin­istration (VA) or military-employed physician.

Locale

This year, the Academy asked graduating residents whether they intended to move around the country and where they planned to live after completing their residency. Over half (59%) responded that they would be moving away from the area where they worked as a resident. Where are they going? See the first bar graph for details.

Subspecialties

When asked about their area of interest within PM&R, residents answered with a variety of sub­specialties. When compared to results from 2007, their answers show a decline in residents entering certain subspecialties, as well as an increase in other areas.

• Pain saw the greatest loss, with 52% responding that they’d be entering the subspecialty last year and only 19% naming it as their interest this year.

• Musculoskeletal medicine saw gains, with 23% naming it their area of interest this year.

• Rehabilitation (including pediatric rehabilitation, neurorehabilitation, cancer rehabilitation, and general rehabilitation) will also see an increase, with 19% claiming they are interested in an area of rehabilitation

• Spine maintains a similar level of interest, with 17% entering the subspecialty in 2008.

• In both 2007 and 2008, no respondents chose the following subspecialties: Cardiac, Clinical Neuro­psychology, Geriatrics, Industrial Rehabilitation, Informatics, Internal Medicine, Motor Control, Neurology, and Research.

The Academy is also pleased to announce that 96% of respondents plan to renew their AAPM&R membership upon completion of their residency. To learn how to renew your membership, click here.

For detailed survey results, click here (PDF Download). Thank you to those of you who completed the survey!

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