PM&R Leaders Promote Equality for DO Applicants and Equivalent Use of COMLEX-USA

May 25, 2023

The NBOME is pleased to announce that leadership organizations in another specialty field have come out in support of eliminating bias in residency applications, specifically for DO applicants, and of the equivalent use of COMLEX-USA qualifications.

Leaders in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R), namely the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation AAPM&R, the Association of Academic Physiatrists, and the American Osteopathic College of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation AOCPMR have released a joint statement in support of reducing medical training bias against DOs and of promoting equality during undergraduate medical education UME and graduate medical education GME recruitment.

Their statement reads, in part:

“We encourage all Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation programs to clearly state their policy regarding the acceptability of COMLEX-USA and USMLE scores and recommend that programs accept COMLEX-USA when considering DO applicants to their training programs.”

Read the full statement here.

“The exciting field of PM&R has historically appreciated the value that DO residents bring to their residency programs and specialties, but confusion remained amongst many DO applicants and their advisors,” said John R. Gimpel, DO, MEd, president and CEO of the NBOME. “We are so pleased that this community has emphatically stood up in support of holistic review, of inclusion for DO applicants, and of acceptance of the DO licensure exam, COMLEX-USA.”

About the NBOME:
The NBOME is an independent, non-governmental, nonprofit assessment organization committed to protecting the public by providing the means to assess competencies for osteopathic medicine and related health care professions. NBOME’s COMLEX-USA examination series is a requirement for graduation from colleges of osteopathic medicine and provides the pathway to licensure for osteopathic physicians in the United States and numerous international jurisdictions.

MEDIA INQUIRIES
Renee Cree, MA
Director for Communications
rcree@nbome.org