Message from the Chief Residents

Thank you for your interest in the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Residency program at the UC Irvine School of Medicine.

Our program is located in beautiful Southern California and is proud to offer a diverse, hands-on educational experience to residents pursuing a career in the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation. We accept five residents into each class of our three-year program.

Rotations

Our program has many strengths. One of them is our unique rotation schedule, which offers diverse learning environments in the private sector, academic settings and the VA.

Most of our rotations are 10 weeks long and include:

• Musculoskeletal medicine
• Interventional pain
• Electrodiagnostics
• Spinal cord injury
• General inpatient rehabilitation
• Pediatrics
• Traumatic brain injury
• Research/outpatient

The rotations are led by enthusiastic and skilled attending physicians who have a genuine, vested interest in the education of our residents. 

Our weekly didactics are led by attendings, who are both general physiatrists and subspecialized in physical medicine and rehabilitation. They also include interprofessional lectures from complementary areas of medicine (for example, neurosurgery, neurology, therapists, radiologists, etc.). The didactic schedule is carefully designed to cover all topics within the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation to provide residents with a solid fund of knowledge in a lecture-based format. 

Research

Research opportunities are vast at UC Irvine.

Our program is supported by academic researchers at UC Irvine who specialize in stem cell therapy for various neurological disorders and injuries, dance medicine, stroke recovery and spinal cord injury. We are also privileged to work with some of the leading researchers in the field of robotics and technology in the setting of rehabilitation.

In addition, residents have plenty of opportunities to work with our clinical attending physicians on projects that complement varied interests and future career aspirations. 

Both avenues of research allow for self-directed projects, providing residents a platform to formulate their own research ideas and questions. In this regard, we are proud to offer the Research Badges project that was first developed at UC Irvine, in partnership with the Association of Academic Physiatrists (AAP). The project is a step-by-step guide to developing and executing a research project, from the birth of an idea to publication submission.

Extracurricular Education

Residents are strongly encouraged to be involved in extracurricular educational events that can broaden their residency experience and training. 

One avenue is attending educational conferences, including the two national physical medicine and rehabilitation conferences: AAP and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 

Our residents are also heavily involved with sporting events, thanks to a wide network of supportive alumni and local sports physicians. These events have included Ironman events, the Los Angeles Marathon, Badwater 135 Ultramarathon, Special Olympics, Disney Half Marathons, sideline coverage at football games and many others. 

Fellowship Opportunities

We are fortunate to have a history of diverse interests within our program. From subspecialized fellowships to general physical medicine and rehabilitation positions, our residents have pursued a range of career paths. 

Recently, our residents have matched with a wide array of competitive fellowships, including:

• Sports medicine
• Interventional pain
• Spinal cord injury
• Pediatrics 

This success is due in large part to our extensive alumni network, supportive attendings and administration, and the cohesiveness among residents. We are a family, dependent on one another to reach our full potential as physiatrists. We understand each other’s goals and aspirations, and we support each other in those pursuits. It’s for these reasons and many more that our program produces competitive, competent and compassionate physiatrists year after year.

Thank you again for your interest in our program. We hope to have the pleasure of meeting you soon.

Edward Chang, DO, & David Ho, DO
Chief Residents, UC Irvine Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Residency Class of 2026