title: Education of physical and rehabilitation medicine specialists across Europe: a call for harmonization.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Physical and rehabilitation medicine (PRM) is well established in Europe and officially recognized by the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS). The European PRM Board works to promote patient safety and quality of care through the development of the highest standards of medical training and healthcare across Europe as well as the harmonization of PRM specialists' qualifications. In its Action Plan for 2014-2018, the UEMS PRM Board has included the harmonization of the PRM curriculum among the EU countries, as one of its main goals. Based on a European Directive, the Belgian Superior Council is envisaging a reform of the PRM curriculum.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this paper is to present the current situation of PRM education in Europe according to the survey carried out by the Belgium Task Force.
  
  
  METHODS
  An online survey was posted on May 3rd 2015 to all delegates of the UEMS PRM Section and Board. Two questions were formulated: 1) What is the duration and curriculum of PRM training in your country? 2) Does a Postgraduate Rehabilitation training exist for other medical specialties?
  
  
  RESULTS
  The majority of the PRM training programs in Europe have a duration ranging from 4 to 5 years, and are not aiming at downsizing the duration to the European minimal training period of 3 years. The vast majority (70%) of the responding countries don't offer an additional accreditation of Rehabilitation for other medical specialties.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Comparing PRM training programs in Europe can support the long-awaited reform of the PRM postgraduate curriculum in Belgium and gives perspective to agree on a transparent and comparable specialty training throughout Europe. Providing a more comparable training promotes the establishment of PRM and its rehabilitation service provisions in the world.
authors.affiliation: Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium - carlotte.kiekens@uzleuven.be.
authors.forename: Carlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kiekens
authors.affiliation: Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Maximiliaan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Moyaert
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Marche Polytechnic University, Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Ceravolo
authors.affiliation: Spinal Unit, Special Medical Rehabilitation Hospital, Varazdinske Toplice, Croatia.
authors.forename: Sasa
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Moslavac
authors.affiliation: Center of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, Vilnius, Lithuania.
authors.forename: Alvydas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Juocevicius
authors.affiliation: Medical School, European University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus.
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Christodoulou
authors.affiliation: Section of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.|Don Gnocchi Foundation and Institute for Research and Care, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Negrini
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D003479:Curriculum / Q000592:standards; D005060:Europe; D006801:Humans; D010810:Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine / Q000193:education*; D013038:Specialization / Q000592:standards*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires