Undergraduate curricula in PM&R: implications for resident recruitment and general image of the specialty

Comprehensive data on undergraduate curricula in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation were obtained in a 1980 questionnaire survey of approved residency programs. Survey parameters included curriculum content (type and duration per academic year), teaching format and educational methodologies, academic exposure and student enrollment, faculty characteristics, and curriculum impact on resident recruitment. Of 53 responding programs 44 reported undergraduate education activities in PM&R. Curriculum content was predominantly clinical in all programs. The teaching format used by 70% of respondents consisted of a combination of lectures, clinical case presentations, conferences, demonstrations and clinical clerkships. Seventy-two percent of this sample were either compulsory or contained a compulsory component. An academic exposure to PM&R of two or more years and a curriculum duration of more than four weeks per academic year was reported by 81% and 75% of respondents respectively. Compulsory programs were offered most frequently in the first two years, while electives were offered mostly in the last two years of study. A low enrollment in electives (less than 50% of class) is reported, regardless of year of study. A teaching faculty of more than five was reported by 63% of programs. A positive curriculum impact on resident recruitment was reported by 72% of the respondents. Positive and negative implications of these findings for the PM&R specialty image and for a career choice in PM&R are discussed.