As noted elsewhere, annual data on OGME is reported using information gathered from the AOA's Intern/Resident Registration Program and data reported by AOA-approved residency programs using the AOA's TIVRA reporting system. Although data from the Match does not change in a given year, program data does change because the AOA COPT and the Program and Trainee Review Council meet three times per year to approve residency programs and positions. Program data reported in the present article are current as of May 31, 2007, and will be finalized in THE JOURNAL`s 2009 Medical Education issue.
In the 2006-2007 academic year, 11,140 osteopathic physicians were in either osteopathic or allopathic (ie, ACGME-accredited) postdoctoral training programs (
Figure 2).
1,4-14 A total of 4511 trainees (40%) were in AOA-approved programs and 6629 (60%) were in ACGME programs.
10 This number represents a slightly higher number of osteopathic physicians attending osteopathic programs during the 2005-2006 academic year, when 4020 (38%) osteopathic trainees were in AOA programs and 6474 (62%) were in ACGME programs.
11
In addition, there were 90 residency training programs in 2006 that were dually accredited by the AOA and the ACGME as well as 19 parallel training programs that were AOA approved but occurred side-by-side with ACGME training programs in the same institution. Trainees who complete dual programs have the option to become board certified by either or both the AOA and the ABMS. Trainees who complete parallel programs are only eligible to become AOA–board certified.
As reported last year,
1 approximately 75% of all AOA-approved internship training positions are located in seven states: Florida, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania (
Table 4). Although some states had fewer positions compared with 2005-2006 data, 10 states had an increase of approved positions (
Figure 3). As a result, there was a total increase of 31 positions in the 2006-2007 academic year—a 1% increase from the previous year.
The number of AOA-approved first year positions decreased slightly from 2704 in the 2005-2006 academic year to 2688 in the 2006-2007 academic year. Although a number of training positions were lost as a result of program closures, the Program and Trainee Review Council approved 644 new positions between April 2007 and November 2007. Funded positions give a better perspective on change than approved positions, which may or may not be funded. In 2005, 2165 positions were funded, 2206 positions were funded in 2006, and 2189 positions were funded in 2007. The fill rates for these funded positions were 68%, 69%, and 76%, respectively. As of January 2, 2008, 633 programs were registered to participate in the AOA Match with a total number of 2456 positions available for the 2330 COM graduates who registered for the Match.
In the 2006-2007 academic year, there were 665 approved AOA residency programs (
Table 5) compared with 648 AOA-approved residency programs in the 2005-2006 academic year and 569 approved programs in the 2004-2005 academic year. Although there were 6045 positions available in the 2006-2007 academic year, slightly fewer than half of the positions (2989 [49%]) were filled. However, this data represents an improvement from the previous year, in which only 2535 (44%) of 5766 positions were filled.