The problem is that our lengthy explanations are typically too abstract for most med students, and most certainly the general public.
I agree that is a challenge. The AAPM&R has initiatives like the "elevator speech" to help come up with ways to explain what we do
One of my co-residents (I am stealing this from her) liked to sell us as the doctor's who focus on function. I agree that it's a big abstract, and not everyone gets it. But there are certainly many people who when they hear that say - "hey, that's the kind of doctor I've always wanted."
Simiarly, Joel Press talked about his Ride for Rehab across America, and he said that most of the people he met had never heard of a physiatrist, but when he described what he does, people became excited.
Some other key points I think that are valuable when selling yourselves to medical students or other physicians:
1. Point out that we are a mid-sized specialty, and that we graduate more residents yearly than specialties like neurology, opthalmology, and ENT. I think that when people think of us an obscure specialty, it is easy to be dismissive. When they realize that we are actually a pretty sizable specialty, it puts a bit of the onus on them to say "hey, shouldn't I know something about them."
2. Believe in yourself. I remember talking to one physiatrist about how to market physiatry. I offered that we should offer to work in family med and internal medicine offices to manage their spine and MSK problems, so that when they see how well we manage their patients, they will embrace what we can do. This physiatrist said "do you really believe that we can manage those things better than family med docs?" My jaw dropped- this guy is actually pretty well established. Needless to say, physiatrists needs to take pride in what we do.
3. Address colleagues as peers, and not suboridinates. This one is big. So many physiatrists, for example, just join ortho groups. While that can be a good model, in many cases the physiatrist is just seen as a glorified physician extender. Physiatrists need to carry themselves as peers and colleagues and not subordinates. Again, it's hard to sell your specialty if you don't truly believe that you are on the same level as other specialties.
4. Get other physicians as patients. This is probably where I do the best job selling the specialty. People become believers when they can see things first hand.
5. Mentor medical students. Again, people need to see with their eyes. For example, I had a great medical student who is going into ER. He asked me at the beginning of the rotation, very candidly and honestly, why someone should go see a physiatrist for spine pain rather than just go to a PT. The very next patient was a very complicated patient with amyloidosis, z-joint arthropathy, and spinal stenosis. We had an extremely complex differential diagnosis that included amyloid deposition in the kidneys, amyloid related peripheral neuropathy, spinal stenosis, and z-joint mediated pain. I just saw that medical student again (now 4 months later), and he said that patient really stood out as an example of where a physiatrist brings something extra to the table
