National Survey of Wilderness Medicine Scholarly Tracks in Emergency Medicine Residency Programs

Abstract

Introduction

Wilderness medicine (WM) tracks provide residents with a framework to foster their interests in wilderness medicine. However, there is little literature specific to WM tracks. We sent surveys to all 287 ACGME-recognized emergency medicine residencies in the United States to obtain data on the prevalence and characteristics of these tracks.

Methods

A survey was distributed via the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine and American College of Emergency Physicians listservs with follow-up emails sent to nonrespondents. The survey included questions regarding program demographics, the presence of a WM track, and the characteristics of the track. Residencies lacking a track were asked about their interest, and challenges faced, in creating a track. We evaluated differences between 3-y and 4-y residency programs, smaller and larger programs, and scholarly activity production using the χ² test, where P < 0.05 was considered significant. We evaluated the differences between academic, community/county, and military centers using the ANOVA test, where P < 0.05 was considered significant.

Results

The response rate was 28%; 24% of respondents had a WM track, and the majority of these were offered at academic centers, 4-year programs, or larger programs. Track participation, administration, and requirements varied significantly. Among programs without a WM track, a minority (35%) reported planning to develop one in the next few years.

Conclusions

Despite the popularity of wilderness medicine, many residency programs do not have a WM scholarly track. Their engagement, administration, funding, scholarly productivity, and requirements are quite variable.

Keywords

Medical education curriculum academic medicine residents

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