Understanding Internal Medicine Residents' Rheumatology Knowledge Base

Rheumatology is one of the internal medicine subspecialties that residents train to become proficient in during their internal medicine training. Our study sought to understand how residents across all postgraduate year levels felt in terms of comfortability and exposure to rheumatology. We focused on the subjective measurement of resident knowledge and exposure rather than objective data. A five-question survey was distributed to all 75 residents of Lenox Hill Hospital's Internal Medicine categorical residency program, from PGY1 to PGY3. When asked if they get enough exposure or feel confident treating patients with rheumatology diseases, 96% of residents responded no. When asked about their confidence in boards, the average response was a 3/10. The residents at our program voiced a strong concern for lack of exposure and education. Other studies and institutions have shown this to be a problem that has also been seen with poor test performance on the subject. We explore educational modalities to help improve this gap in education.