Podiatry Residency part of Orthopedics Department?

[Marry2Pod]

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Hi All,

Just curious - For residency training, do you think it is better for a Podiatry residency to be part of the Dept of Orthopedics, separate from them, or it doesn't matter? I am wondering if the Podiatry Residency in a Orthopedic Dept would "take away" experiences from the podiatry residents, especially if there are Orthopedic residents? Or not? Just wondering your thoughts.

 

[PADPM]

Good question, but sometimes it's simply a matter of how the bylaws of the hospital are set up. In some hospitals, the podiatry department may be a subdivision of the department of surgery, in some hospitals it may be subdivision of the orthopedic department and in one of the hospitals where I'm on staff it's broken down to the department of surgery, division of orthopedics, subdivision of podiatric surgery.

It's often a matter of semantics, since the actual orthopedic department will rarely have any control over the program in my experience. The podiatric residency director usually calls all the shots and sets up the various rotations. It has been my experience that the podiatric resident does generally have greater opportunities available when there are no orthopedic residents, because it's simply a matter of numbers. The less people around to perform a case, the more for YOU.

In some hospitals, the orthopedic surgeons will always favor "their own" residents and may treat the DPM like second class citizens. However, I know of other programs where the podiatric resident was perfectly integrated and equally respected. It really depends on the individual program, the individual doctor and of course the resident.

That's why it's imperative to learn as much as possible about every program. And why it's equally as important to represent the professional well if and when you do rotate through different departments such as orthopedics. You only get one chance to make a first impression.

 

[Marry2Pod]

Thanks for the insight!