A sense of belonging is deeply ingrained in the fabric of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the UT Health Long School of Medicine. Our collective intelligence, talents, and skills are enriched by fostering a culture where every individual feels valued and can contribute effectively to serving our differing patient populations locally and regionally. Embracing a wide range of social determinants of health in our patient care, we are committed to understanding, embracing, and collaborating with all individuals, irrespective of ability, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identification, veteran status, or other unique attributes.
Our vision is to mirror the strength of the community we serve by:
- Engaging in continuous, purposeful efforts for holistic recruitment and retention that enhance our department.
- Recognizing belonging as a broad concept, encompassing life experiences, traditions, and other distinctive characteristics.
- Providing resources to promote a culture of belonging.
- Defining and consistently enhancing metrics for evaluating the impact of our belonging initiatives.
“Southern hospitality” meets “hospital” here at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. The Lone Star State is known for its good food, kind people, and low cost of living among many other things. Fortunately for our residents, our program is known for the same. We are one of the country’s largest PM&R programs; because of that, and our location, we have incredible training opportunities. The larger size of our program is not only a benefit when it comes to spreading the call load, but it also means you have that many more people who are happy and willing to answer questions or offer mentorship. The program itself has many tangible training benefits including training at a county hospital, VA, one of five polytrauma centers in the country, diverse inpatient and outpatient opportunities, academic and private practice models, bountiful opportunities for procedures (starting intern year!), tons of research, access to most sub-specialties, and faculty and staff who are leaders in their respective fields. In particular several of our attendings lead their respective fields and have quite literally written entire textbooks on spasticity and EMGs. The mixture of tangible and intangible benefits gained from our program makes UT Health San Antonio a special place. We really are one big, happy, and well-trained family here at UT Health San Antonio PM&R!
Corey Hayes, MD, PMR Wellness & MS4 Liaison Chief Resident
