Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Resident Experience
Letter from the Chief of Resident Affairs
Hi! Thank you for your interest in the UTSW PM&R residency program. We have one of the largest PM&R residency programs in the country, with 9 categorical residents per class. Despite the large size, it truly feels like a close-knit family. The camaraderie amongst the residents was palpable when I was a fourth-year medical student interviewing. The virtual interview social and in-person second look sold me on the program. During my time here, I can genuinely say that I have not been disappointed. I have developed lifelong friendships, seen many of my co-residents expand their families, and spent numerous hours laughing both at work and outside of work with residents and attendings in this program.
Our residency training is thorough and diverse. We have an integrated intern year that gives us a broad-based foundation of knowledge and readily prepares us for inpatient rehabilitation. Subsequently, in our PGY2-4 years, we rotate at Parkland Hospital, UTSW (Zale Lipshy, Clements, off-site clinics), Children's Medical Center, VA North Texas, and Presbyterian Hospital. We see the whole gamut of patient backgrounds, demographics, and cultures. Our learning experience is also hands-on, where we have early opportunities to perform procedures and have graded autonomy for patient care decisions.
Our residency culture is the epitome of team based. We pride ourselves on helping each other, both professionally and personally. I remember my first PM&R clinic week as an intern, and one of the chief residents at the time texted me every day to help me find each clinic, ensure I have the appropriate note templates, and guide me on clinic flow and policies. We have a group chat where people can ask ANY questions at ANY time, and another resident is always available to assist. Residents on less intensive rotations are eager to help their colleagues on busy inpatient days. We have resident committees that foster group-based activities and wellness. We also have faculty and peer mentorship. All these avenues are in place to build the togetherness of our program, and I believe it serves us well.
We hope you find our program as awesome as we do! Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of the chiefs, Dr. Scott, or Terri Isbell if you have any questions about our program!
Niran Vijayaraghavan, PGY4
Chief of Resident Affairs
Resident Committees
At UTSW PM&R, we have developed resident-run committees to help further build and develop the culture and infrastructure of our program:
- Recruitment Committee
- Template Committee
- Social Media Committee
- Community Service Committee
- Newsletter Committee
- Wellness Committee
- Global Health Committee
These committees are all "chaired" by an upper-level resident who leads and facilitates the activities for the individual committees. Many of these committees also include faculty members.
Resident Wellness
In 2017, the residency program created the Wellness Committee. The Wellness Committee adheres to the seven spokes of wellness (emotional, social, environmental, physical, intellectual, spiritual, and career). Events occur both during and after work hours. The committee is chaired by residents, and its members include residents, fellows, faculty, and administrative staff. UT Southwestern GME also offers many wellness resources including a Resident Wellness Clinic that is available to all trainees.
We also have numerous annual events that contribute to resident wellness
- July Welcome Social
- Orientation Week Socials
- Resident Team-Building Retreat
- Annual Faculty/Resident Football Game
- Annual Halloween Party
- Annual Holiday Party
- Annual Pickleball Social
- Interdisciplinary Socials with therapists/nurses/other staff
- Interdisciplinary Socials with BUMC PM&R Residency