Fair Offers Insights into a Medical Discipline
As medical students complete their clinical rotations, they begin to form an idea about the disciplines that most interest them, and to solidify thoughts on the field in which they hope to make their career. However, because many medical schools do not require clerkship rotations in certain disciplines, there are some that students only encounter if they already have an interest or pursue an elective during their fourth year.
Students try their hand using ultrasoundTo help familiarize Einstein students with physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R), which is among disciplines for which there is no formal rotation, the PM&R student interest group recently teamed with the Montefiore PM&R residency program to host a PM&R Fair in the College of Medicine’s Glass Café. Approximately 60 students visited the interactive career advisement event aimed at educating them about the field. For many students, the fair represented their introduction to PM&R and the work of a physiatrist. Students also were able to meet department residents, fellows, attending physicians and Dr. Mark Thomas, associate professor in the Arthur S. Abramson Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at Einstein and residency program director at Montefiore.
The Work of a Physiatrist
(From left) Dr. Mark Thomas (residency program director for PM&R at Montefiore with Dr. Gary Inwald, an attending in PM&RThe field of physical medicine & rehabilitation is broad, encompassing both chronic and acute conditions ranging from arthritis and back pain to stroke and brain injuries. Therefore, physiatrists treat patients suffering from pain and disability resulting either from injury or from musculoskeletal and neurological conditions. Their main goal is to optimize patient function and quality of life. To accomplish this, physiatrists often work with and lead interdisciplinary teams consisting of surgeons, physical and occupational therapists, nurses, social workers and other physicians, employing interventions that are either non-operative, rehabilitative or surgical.
“This event filled an important gap in exposing students to research, career opportunities and some of the diagnostic tools that we use in PM&R,” said Dr. Thomas.
“Several students mentioned that they hadn’t considered the field before but now would,” added Dr. Atira Kaplan, co-resident liaison to Einstein’s PM&R student interest group. “At least one student spoke with Dr. Thomas about setting up a rotation.”
Learning by Doing
The most intriguing aspect of the fair was the opportunity to visit several stations where students could see and use tools of the trade. Hands-on experiences included being able to observe the anatomy of their own forearm through use of an ultrasound wand; taking an electromyography to evaluate and record the electrical activity produced by their skeletal muscles; and learning how and where to safely inject Botox.
“I really enjoyed seeing the different tools physiatrists use and being able to try them out,” said MSTP student Rama Yakubu. ““It definitely opened my eyes to a field that wasn’t on my radar.”
Students also learned about medical student summer research opportunities and residency program information. “PM&R is likely the field I’ll pursue,” noted fourth-year medical student Kevin Frison. “It was great to see other students get excited about it. There are so many neat aspects to working with patients and helping them to get moving and to be free of pain.”
Posted on: Friday, May 27, 2016