Where Will I Go? Relative Location of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residencies Compared With Medical Schools Among Recent Residents

Abstract

Physical medicine and rehabilitation has rapidly been garnering interest as health care increases the emphasis on rehabilitation and management for acute and chronic diseases. This study analyzes recent geographical trends of physical medicine and rehabilitation residents via physical medicine and rehabilitation residents from 2019 to 2023, which were identified from publicly available data. The relative distribution from medical school to residency, medical school to preliminary program, and preliminary program to residency were analyzed. These locations were categorized as within 100 miles, same state, same region, or different region. Odds ratio were calculated for the aforementioned relative locations with respect to the presence of a home residency program. A total of 1836 residents were included. The majority of residents (51%) stayed within the same region as their medical school. Residents from medical schools with a home program were more likely to stay within 100 miles (odds ratio: 3.64), the same state (odds ratio: 3.19), and same region (odds ratio: 2.56). Overall, physical medicine and rehabilitation residents are likely to stay within the same region as their medical school and preliminary year. In addition, the presence of a home program significantly increases the odds of matching within 100 miles, same state, and same region.