Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Fellowship Spotlight: Sports Medicine

Sports Medicine is one of the sub-specialty areas in physiatry with fellowship training programs offered throughout the United States.

I connected with Dr. Prakash Jayabalan MD, PhD who recently completed his Sports Medicine fellowship at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (RIC) in Chicago, IL to discuss his experiences.

Dr. Adam Susmarski (AS): What attracted you to pursue a Sports Medicine fellowship?

Dr. Prakash Jayabalan (PJ): In residency I realized I most enjoyed finding ways to keep people active despite their injuries or disabilities since exercise is truly our best medicine. I also had enjoyed team coverage, procedures and managing sports injuries including concussion and pursuing fellowship seemed the ideal way to improve my knowledge and skills in these areas. In addition I really love musculoskeletal research and fellowship also allowed me to find novel research avenues.

AS: What are the aspects of fellowship that applicants should carefully consider when making their rank order list?

PJ: It is important to think about what your goals are in pursuing fellowship. Some fellowships tend to be more academic and are more suited for someone who wants to be in that type of practice post-fellowship. If a particular fellowship has a certain strength then it is important to think about whether that is a fundamental goal of yours. Other aspects that are vital are the mentorship that you are likely to receive during the fellowship, as well as the didactics and support you will receive during the year. Ultimately you are not only learning to be a good fellow but also transitioning to becoming an attending so you need to make sure that there are skills that you are going to be able to refine during the year.
Geography or location of the fellowship may be a focus to some particularly if you have a significant other or family traveling with you. On the other hand, it is only one year of training and it will fly by! Finally it is important to consider whether you want to do a PM&R, pediatric or family medicine sports medicine fellowship as each option has its own focus and this is important to consider in your decision making.

AS: How did you choose which fellowship was the “best fit” for you?

PJ: The fellowship at RIC was ideal for me since I knew I would be able to improve my procedural skills, gain primary sports coverage experience and improve my sports medicine knowledge base. In addition as the year progresses fellows are provided some flexibility to focus on particular interests they may have in sports medicine. The level of mentorship and teaching from leaders in the field was also pivotal in my decision. The vast majority of prior fellows have gone into academic practice which was always my goal and therefore I knew the fellowship would also provide me plenty of academic opportunities. Another bonus was the idea of having a co-fellow as I liked the idea of us working as a team and many fellowships do not have this capability.

AS: What has been your favorite experience as a fellow?

PJ: One of the best experiences I had in fellowship was leading my own station at the finish line tent of the Chicago Marathon. This is a huge event for which the entire city comes together and having that responsibility to lead the treatment team managing injuries to the elite athletes as well as the regular runner in a mass sporting event such as this was incredibly exciting and an experience I will never forget.

AS: Now that you are approaching completion of fellowship what is some advice you have for residents applying for fellowship?

PJ: Getting a sports medicine fellowship is competitive and it is all the more important to get involved in sports medicine pursuits as early as you can in residency. For example, getting involved in volunteer team coverage opportunities in your residency, organizing sports electives, presenting at national meetings and ideally performing some musculoskeletal related research are all great for your application. Impressing on your sports elective and getting strong letters are also equally as important.

Once you are a fellow, the year goes by extremely quick so enjoy every moment!

Adam Susmarski, DO
LCDR, MC, USN
Academic Chief Resident
University of Pittsburgh

Prakash Jayabalan MD, PhD
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago
Northwestern University

This article was published in Physiatry in Motion, October 25th, 2016