Leadership Skills-Dr. Norbury - Leadership Skills

Dr. Norbury - Leadership Skills

Pdf Summary

In this document, John Norbury, MD, discusses the need to foster interest in neuromuscular medicine among medical students and provides practical strategies to engage them. The lack of comfort with lesion localization and interpretation of neurological diagnostic tests among students in all specialties is highlighted. The overall interest in neuromuscular medicine within the fields of physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) and neurology is decreasing, as evidenced by a decline in the number of candidates taking the ABEM and the availability of neuromuscular fellowships.<br /><br />The lack of a physician electromyography (EDX) workforce poses challenges for patient care, as physical therapists and advanced practice providers are starting to perform EDX evaluations, and some surgeons are questioning the value of high-quality EDX testing. To address these issues, strategies are proposed to foster medical student interest in neuromuscular medicine.<br /><br />These strategies include reaching out to student interest groups, engaging with orphan programs as outside speakers, incorporating neuromuscular ultrasound, offering shadowing experiences in the lab tailored to students' interests, ensuring a positive experience in EMG or neuromuscular clinics, addressing students' "neurophobia," advocating for neuromuscular medicine in the curriculum, and serving as a resource for student research and scholarship.<br /><br />Overall, the document emphasizes the importance of engaging medical students in neuromuscular medicine early on to address the declining interest in the field and the challenges it poses to patient care. The strategies provided aim to spark interest, provide hands-on experiences, and integrate students into the clinical workflow effectively.

Keywords

neuromuscular medicine

medical students

interest

lesion localization

neurological diagnostic tests

physical medicine and rehabilitation

neurology

physician electromyography

EDX workforce

patient care