The study found that between 2019 and 2023, there was an overall 45% decline in anesthesia-based applicants to pain medicine fellowships.
The study analyzed data from the Electronic Residency Application Service and the National Resident Matching Program from 2019 to 2023 — as well as preliminary data from 2024 —focusing on trends in fellowship applications to pain medicine programs.
Applications to pain medicine fellowships dropped from 351 in 2019 to 193 in 2023. The number of female applicants has also decreased every year since 2019.
Additionally, the 2023 match saw a significant number of unfilled programs, with 35 out of 115 programs failing to fill all positions. Preliminary data from the 2024 match cycle suggest this downward trend is continuing, possibly signaling a future workforce shortage in pain-management anesthesiologists.