Resident selection for a physical medicine and rehabilitation program: feasibility and reliability of the multiple...

The development of a process to select the best residents for training programs is challenging. There is a paucity of literature to support the implementation of an evidence-based approach or even best practice for program directors and selection committees. Although assessment of traditional academic markers such as clerkship grades and licensing examination scores can be helpful, these measures typically fail to capture performance in the noncognitive domains of medicine. In the specialty of physical medicine and rehabilitation, physician competencies such as communication, health advocacy, and managerial and collaborative skills are of particular importance, but these are often difficult to evaluate in admission interviews. Recent research on admission processes for medical schools has demonstrated reliability and validity of the "multiple mini-interview." The objective of our project was to develop and evaluate the multiple mini-interview for a physical medicine and rehabilitation residency training program, with a focus on assessment of the noncognitive physician competencies. We found that the process was feasible, time efficient, and cost-efficient and that there was good interrater reliability. The multiple mini-interview may be applied to other physical medicine and rehabilitation residency programs. Further research is needed to confirm reliability and determine validity.