Fellowships in Podiatric Medicine

Area of Science:

• Podiatric Medicine and Surgery
• Medical Education
• Surgical Fellowships

Background:

• Growing trend of podiatric residents pursuing fellowship training.
• Lack of formal characterization of fellowship training in podiatric medicine and surgery.
• Need for data to improve fellowship experiences and training quality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To formally characterize fellowship training in podiatric medicine and surgery.
• To gather insights from both fellowship directors and fellows regarding training aspects.
• To identify key factors influencing program selection and satisfaction.

Main Methods:

• Online survey distributed to fellowship directors and fellows over two years.
• Surveys covered daily responsibilities, training quality, work-life balance, and application processes.
• Data collected from 33 fellowship directors and 49 fellows.

Main Results:

• Fellows reported general satisfaction, with higher satisfaction linked to research time and quality of training (research, clinical, surgical, practice management).
• Key program selection factors included program focus, director reputation, and career options.
• Top foot and ankle topics of interest were hindfoot/ankle arthrodesis, arthroscopy, and trauma.

Conclusions:

• Fellowship training in podiatric medicine and surgery is generally satisfactory but can be enhanced.
• Standardization of the fellowship application process is a commonly suggested improvement.
• Study provides baseline data to guide future improvements in fellowship programs and experiences.