The prosthetics and orthotics program is a two-year baccalaureate program. More than 65 students are admitted each year to these programs. The Department has had a strong commitment to research since its inception. Current areas of research include spinal cord injury, brain injury, motor disorders, amputation, multiple sclerosis, burns, cerebral palsy, disabilities related to aging, chronic pain, assistive technology, evaluation of surgical treatments for spasticity, spinal cord recovery, the prevention of pressure-induced skin damage, and neural control of movement. Postgraduate research training opportunities are available through an award from the National Institutes of Health.
Residents also train at several private practice settings.
Each has multidisciplinary teams to provide both inpatient and outpatient services to persons with a wide range of disabling conditions. Specialty clinics provide services to the entire Northwest region for persons with musculoskeletal disorders, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, post-polio disabilities, electrodiagnosis, disabled driver training, assistive technology, pediatric disabilities, amputation, spinal cord injury, sports injuries, spine disease, and brain injury. The Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency Training Program at the University of Washington provides an opportunity to develop skills and scholarship in a unique environment. The Department has excellent relationships with those clinical departments traditionally associated with physical medicine and rehabilitation such as neurosurgery, neurology, and orthopaedics, and is able to draw upon the basic science units in the School of Medicine and relevant undergraduate and graduate schools. The training program meets the General and Special requirements of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and was approved for a 5 year accreditation, the maximum granted, at its last review in 1998.