Podiatric medical school

Podiatric Medical School is the term used to designate the institutions which educate students and train them to be podiatric physicians. In the United States, only schools which are accredited by the Council on Podiatric Medical Education (CPME) may earn the status of being a "Podiatric Medical School". The Doctor of Podiatric Medicine degree is commonly abbreviated D.P.M. degree. The D.P.M. degree is a prerequisite for an individual to be accepted into a CPME accredited surgical residency.

United States

Podiatric medical education in the United States consists of four (4) years of graduate education with the first two focusing primarily upon the sciences and the last two focusing upon didactic, clinical, and hospital externship experience.[1] After successful completion of these four (4) years of professional education, students are granted a Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (D.P.M.) degree. A Doctor of Podiatric Medicine is considered a medical doctor of the foot and ankle and receives an education very similar to that of a Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) and Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.). Podiatric Surgeons who have completed a 3-year surgical residency can expect to make an average salary of $250,000 a year while their non surgical counterparts can expect to earn significantly less. Average salaries across the profession vary greatly due to the large number of specializations from which Doctors of Podiatric medicine can potentially choose.

Residency

In order to enhance the progression from student doctor to competent podiatric physician and podiatric surgeon status, graduates are required to complete a three year residency program before practicing podiatric medicine.[1] Each individual residency program must be approved by the Council on Podiatric Medical Education of the American Podiatric Medical Association. The American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine provides a complete list of approved Podiatric Residency Programs.

Accreditation and Governing Bodies

All podiatric medical schools in the United States are accredited by the Council on Podiatric Medical Education.[2] The American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine is in charge of governing many aspects of Podiatric Medical Education including a mentor network, a centralized application service for prospective students, the Central Application Service for Podiatric Residencies (CASPR), and the Centralized Residency Interview Program (CRIP).[3] In addition, students are represented by the American Podiatric Medical Student's Association.[4] Each school is also accredited by their respective state and/or regional accrediting association.

Schools in USA

There are nine accredited podiatric medical schools in the United States.

The nine podiatric medical schools (all are accredited by the rigorous standards established by the CPME) in the U.S. are:

Canada

There is one podiatric medical school in Canada based in Trois-Rivieres (Quebec) leading to the D.P.M. degree. It is not accredited by the CPME in the United States, but its curriculum is based on the standards established by the CPME and is approved and accredited by the Quebec Order of Podiatrists and L'Office des professions du Québec.

The Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Alberta is currently developing a business plan to establish the second podiatric medical school in Canada by 2012.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Residencies", AACPM
  2. ↑ "Council on Podiatric Medical Education"
  3. ↑ "About AACPM", AACPM
  4. ↑ "Home". American Podiatric Medical Students Association. 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  5. ↑ "Academic Plan 2007-2012", University of Alberta, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry

External links

American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons