Amputee care education in physical medicine and rehabilitation residency programs

The aim of this study was to assess amputee care-related educational offerings and barriers to further educational opportunities in United States physical medicine and rehabilitation residency programs.

A two-part survey was distributed to all United States physical medicine and rehabilitation residency program directors. Part 1 assessed the use of educational tools in amputee education. Part 2 assessed the potential barriers to amputee care-related education.

Sixty-nine percent of the program directors responded. Seventy-five percent or more of the programs that responded have didactic lectures; grand rounds; reading lists; self-assessment exam review; gait analysis training; training with prosthetists; faculty with amputee expertise; and amputee care during inpatient, outpatient, and consult rotations. Less than 25% of the programs use intranet resources. No more than 14% of the programs said any one factor was a major barrier. However, some of the most prominent major barriers were limited faculty number, finances, and patient volume. The factors many of the programs considered somewhat of a barrier included lack of national standardized resources for curriculum, resident time, and faculty time.

This study identified the most commonly used amputee educational opportunities and methods in physical medicine and rehabilitation residencies as well as the barriers to furthering resident amputee education. Developing Web-based resources on amputee care and increasing awareness of physiatrists as perioperative consultants could improve resident amputee education and have important implications toward optimizing care of individuals with amputation.