American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine May 2015 - (Page 14)

An Exercise in Negotiation: The Success of the Pain Medicine Fellowship Match Magdalena Anitescu, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care University of Chicago Board member, Association of Pain Program Directors and Anesthesia Subspecialty Program Directors David Walega, MD, MSCI Associate Professor, Department of Anesthesiology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois Chief, Division of Pain Medicine President, Association of Pain Program Directors Gary Brenner, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Anesthesia, Harvard Medical School Past President, Association of Pain Program Directors and Anesthesia Subspecialty Program Directors Section Editor: Kevin Vorenkamp, MD P ain Medicine, one of the oldest subspecialty fellowships within the parent specialties (anesthesiology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, neurology-psychiatry) has been increasingly popular in recent years. While 15 years ago interview season for many Pain Medicine Fellowship positions was conducted in late fall to early winter of the graduating year (sometimes even in the spring), in the past 8 years those dates have shifted earlier. Some programs begin interviewing as early as almost 2 years before graduation. This has created anxiety among residents (who sometimes have not even completed a pain rotation before needing to apply to Pain Medicine Fellowships) and program directors (concerned with the recruitment process and fearful they would not acquire the best candidates for their positions). Early efforts at a "gentleperson's agreement" targeted a standardized interview season, but despite early consensus among many fellowship directors, many programs continued to fill their positions well before this period even began. Therefore, talks about a match system began to emerge and eventually gained the required consensus for implementation. This is the story of establishing a match for Pain Medicine Fellowships. It involves outstanding skills in the art of outreach and negotiation, attention to detail, and the ability to juggle schedules and interests of almost 100 Pain Medicine Fellowship Programs. Dr David Walega (Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois), Dr Gary Brenner (Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts), and Dr Brian Hoelzer (Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education, Rochester, Minnesota) worked concurrently with Pain Medicine Fellowship Program directors within the Association of Pain Program Directors (APPD) and the American Association of Subspecialty Program Directors-Pain Medicine to ensure the success of the match process. THE PAIN MEDICINE FELLOWSHIP MATCH PROCESS The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) approved Pain Medicine Fellowship Programs began a formal "match" for the first time in October 2013 for the 2014-2015 academic year, using the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). By all accounts, this challenging transition, long debated and overdue, was a success. A total of 71 of 93 ACGME-accredited, nonmilitary Pain Medicine Programs enrolled in the match last year, ensuring 76% participation. All but three programs filled their spots in the 2014-2015 match, and these programs filled their five positions immediately after. There were 395 applicants for 261 positions, leaving 34% of applicants unmatched. Comparatively, 13% of Pediatric Anesthesiology Fellowship applicants were unmatched for the same academic year, demonstrating the continued popularity and competitive nature of Pain Medicine as a specialty. "Among many benefits, a match affords the ability to follow demographics of the applicant pool, gain other specialty-specific data, and identify opportunities to enhance interest or diversity in this field of medicine." 14 2 The feedback from program directors and fellowship applicants has been overwhelmingly positive, and the match for the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine May 2015

President’s Message
Editorial
Pharmacogenetics in Monitoring of Chronic Pain Patients: Are We There Yet?
Phrenic Nerve Injury and Interscalene Nerve Block: Have We Learned Anything From the Surgical Treatment of Over 150 Cases of Diaphragmatic Paralysis From Multiple Etiologies?
An Exercise in Negotiation: The Success of the Pain Medicine Fellowship Match
Regional Analgesia for Patients with Acute Rib Fractures
Application of Regional Anesthetic Techniques for Cancer Pain

American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine May 2015