Evaluation of Orthopaedic Interest Groups in American Medical Schools

Orthopaedic interest groups (OIGs) are student-run organizations that can provide medical students with early exposure to orthopaedic surgery. OIGs can serve as venues for musculoskeletal education, clinical experiences, and mentorship to students with otherwise limited access to orthopaedics. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and opportunities offered by OIGs.

The websites of all allopathic medical schools in the United States were evaluated. Each website was examined for an established OIG and any pertinent information regarding shadowing, research opportunities, lectures, workshops, or opportunities to interact with residents. OIGs were categorized based on the number and type of offerings provided to their members.

Of the 141 allopathic medical school websites evaluated, 108 (108/141, 76%) had evidence of an orthopaedic interest group. Sixty-nine (69/108, 64%) of these schools described the opportunities provided. The most common opportunities were clinical skills workshops (41/69, 59%), lectures (32/69, 46%), and opportunities to interact with current residents (30/69, 43%). The majority of OIGs (39/69, 57%) offered fewer than half of the possible opportunities and only 6 groups (9%) offered all five opportunities.

The majority of allopathic medical schools in the United States have an OIG; however, the opportunities provided to orthopaedic interest group members vary widely from institution to institution.