Third year rotations in PM&R

[Gabby]

Hey guys! I've recently started researching PMR and I have a question. During third-year rotations, none of the schools I'm applying to list PMR. Is it a straight out elective or can I do a rotation in PMR as part of something like IM? If not, how do people know they want to apply to PMR programs before 4th year?

ETA: Sorry one more question. I'm really interested in a rural practice, preferrably somewhere in New England. Is PM&R conducive to that? I notice the only New England residencies in the field are in Boston.

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[Pontifex Maximus]

It is pretty rare to get an elective, much less a PM&R elective in 3rd year. Sometimes you can swap stuff out to 4th year to try to take an elective. You really have to do your homework, shadow, glean from other rotations, etc. There are a lot of fields you don't see third year.

 

[PMR2008]

PM&R rotation is considered an elective. A lot of people I know got exposed to PM&R during ortho, medicine or neurology rotations. I was lucky enough to set up a PM&R elective during the end of my 3rd year. You can always shadow a PM&R doc during one of your lighter 3rd year rotations. I would suggest setting up a PM&R rotation at any department with a residency program that accepts 3rd year medical students. Learn as much as you can and than set up a rotation at one of the top programs in the nation as a 4th year. This way you will really shine and get better letters of recommendations and maybe even an interview during your rotation. Because PM&R is a relatively small field it is all about who you know. If you show interest, have decent grades and know the right people you will have no trouble getting a good spot.
PM&r is definitely conductive to rural practice. If you are interested in inpatient rehab a lot of community hospitals have 10-15 bed inpatient rehab units you can manage. You can do strictly outpatient rehab basically anywhere you want. All the New England residencies are in Boston.
Here is an example of a rehab hospital in "rural" New England - http://www.fairlawnrehab.org/

Hey guys! I've recently started researching PMR and I have a question. During third-year rotations, none of the schools I'm applying to list PMR. Is it a straight out elective or can I do a rotation in PMR as part of something like IM? If not, how do people know they want to apply to PMR programs before 4th year?

ETA: Sorry one more question. I'm really interested in a rural practice, preferrably somewhere in New England. Is PM&R conducive to that? I notice the only New England residencies in the field are in Boston.

 

[Gabby]

Thank you to both of you for answering my questions!

Another thing -- if PMR is conducive to New England practice, how come there are only three residencies and all of them are in Boston? For that matter, why aren't there that many PMR residencies anyway? From what I've learned so far through my own research, it seems like a great field for anyone interested in lots of patient interaction (like me!).

I'd love to do residency in New England but since those three places are presumably competitive, I guess I shouldn't count on it. I'll be attending an osteopathic medical school and I have no way of predicting my board scores on the USMLE, obviously. I know they look beyond that, but it's just a shame there aren't more programs to up my chances.

 

[Ludicolo]

Another thing -- if PMR is conducive to New England practice, how come there are only three residencies and all of them are in Boston? For that matter, why aren't there that many PMR residencies anyway? From what I've learned so far through my own research, it seems like a great field for anyone interested in lots of patient interaction (like me!).

While one can eventually tailor their PM&R practice so they can thrive in rural locations, residency training requires exposure to a wide variety of things like trauma, SCI, brain injury, amputee, neuromuscular diseases, etc. The patient volume necessary for adequate experience in these areas is probably best provided in urban settings, or in larger tertiary referral centers.