Suggested Curricular Guidelines for Musculoskeletal and Sports Medicine in Family Medicine Residency Training

Abstract

Patients often seek care from a family physician when they have a musculoskeletal injury or sport-related ailment. Family physicians must be adequately trained to provide this care. While general guidance is provided by the Accreditation Counsel for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) it is left up to the individual programs to develop, implement, and execute their orthopedic and sports medicine curriculums. The American Academy of Family Physicians' (AAFP) Recommended Curriculum Guideline for Family Medicine Residents — Musculoskeletal and Sports Medicine provides a basic outline format for curriculum content and reference resources. The aim of this article is to elaborate on those training requirements and help programs to develop a curriculum implementation plan that will deliver a baseline level of competence for family medicine trainees.

Sports Medicine Curricular Recommendations for Undergraduate Medical Education

“…It may not be feasible to implement an entire curriculum all at once; however, schools should implement as much as possible based on available resources. Previously published resources for resident SM education may prove useful in supporting implementation at the UME level (18)(19)(20)(21)(22).…”

“…It is recommended that medical students have exposure to and participate in common MSK procedures, including landmark-guided injections, methods of bone and joint immobilization, and simple common reduction techniques as opportunities present themselves (22).…”

“…Students should be familiar with the components of the PPE, conditions that warrant further evaluation prior to clearance, and the indications that restrict athletes from sport. They should demonstrate a basic understanding of the importance of identifying prior MSK and medical issues that may limit sports participation, or that could lead to significant disability (22,27). Students should familiarize themselves with disease processes and conditions for which participation in physical activity may cause harm to the participant (25).…”

“…To address the SM knowledge needs of physicians in various specialties, formal recommendations have been published that provide a guide for resident specialty-specific expectations (18)(19)(20)(21)(22). However, to date, there are no formal recommendations for medical student SM education, and literature surrounding SM education initiatives for medical learners is sparse.…”

Musculoskeletal Injections Performed by Family Medicine Residents Participating in a Clinical Sports Medicine Track

“…uidelines exist for MSK and sports medicine (SM) education in family medicine (FM) residencies including training in common musculoskeletal (MSK) injections. [1][2][3] Per national FM residency survey data, 89% of graduating FM residents (FMRs) felt prepared to perform joint aspiration and injection, and 17% felt prepared to use MSK ultrasound. 4 To our knowledge, there is no prior literature on the development of a longitudinal SM clinical track for FMRs that leverages an academic SM clinic as a training site.…”