Prometric Exam for Physiatrists (PM&R / Rehabilitation Doctors): Specialist Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Licence for DHA, MOHAP, DOH, SCFHS & QCHP — the 14-Area Blueprint, 65% Pass Mark, Rehab Hospital Roles, MD and DNB Recognition and Salaries (2026)

Road traffic injuries, stroke at a young age, and a large population living with diabetic complications and amputation have given the Gulf a rehabilitation need that its health systems are now building for: dedicated rehabilitation hospitals, long-term care facilities and home-care programmes. Each needs physiatrists — doctors trained in physical medicine and rehabilitation — to lead the team. The specialty is small everywhere, and smaller still in the region's own training pipeline. For holders of an MD or DNB in physical medicine and rehabilitation, an Arab Board, European or North American board, or equivalent, this is the route.

The exam

• Specialist Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PHY5261): 150 single-best-answer questions, 3 hours, pass mark 65% — 98 correct answers
• References: Braddom's Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, DeLisa's Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Brain Injury Medicine (Zasler) and Spinal Cord Medicine (Kirshblum)

Two of four references are single-condition texts — brain injury and spinal cord injury — which tells you where the depth is expected.

Who sits it

Physiatry is a physician specialty licensed on a postgraduate qualification in physical medicine and rehabilitation: MD or DNB PMR, Arab Board, FEBPRM, ABPMR, FRCP (Rehabilitation Medicine) with a CCT, or equivalent. It is not the same as physiotherapy — physiotherapists are allied health professionals with their own licence (physiotherapist guide) — and it is not the same as rheumatology, orthopaedics or sports medicine, each of which has its own paper (rheumatology, orthopaedics, sports medicine). An MBBS with a diploma in physical medicine is generally placed at a lower tier. Read the recognition guide and run the eligibility check.

The fourteen blueprint areas

1. Spinal cord injury — ASIA classification and neurological level, functional expectations by level, autonomic dysreflexia, neurogenic bladder and bowel programmes, spasticity, pressure injury prevention, heterotopic ossification, syringomyelia
2. Stroke — recovery stages, hemiplegic shoulder, aphasia and neglect management, dysphagia and aspiration risk, spasticity treatment including botulinum toxin, driving and return-to-work assessment
3. Traumatic brain injury — Rancho Los Amigos levels and matching interventions, post-traumatic amnesia, agitation management, disorders of consciousness, cognitive rehabilitation, post-concussion syndrome
4. Neurorehabilitation — multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, Guillain–Barré, motor neurone disease, peripheral neuropathy, cerebral palsy in adults
5. Musculoskeletal, sport and chronic pain rehabilitation — low back and neck pain, tendinopathies, injection techniques, chronic pain models and multidisciplinary programmes, fibromyalgia, complex regional pain syndrome
6. Amputation, prosthetics and orthotics — amputation levels and energy cost, residual limb care, prosthetic components and prescription, gait deviations and their causes, orthotic prescription by condition
7. Paediatric rehabilitation — cerebral palsy classification and management, spina bifida, muscular dystrophy, developmental assessment
8. Rheumatology rehabilitation — joint protection, energy conservation, exercise prescription in inflammatory arthritis
9. Orthopaedic rehabilitation — post-arthroplasty protocols and precautions, fracture rehabilitation, weight-bearing rules
10. Cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation — phases, exercise prescription, safety criteria
11. Burns and oncology rehabilitation — contracture prevention, scar management, lymphoedema, cancer-related fatigue
12. Geriatric rehabilitation — falls, deconditioning, hip fracture pathways, frailty
13. Patient safety — safe patient handling, VTE prophylaxis in immobile patients, pressure injury staging
14. Professionalism and ethics — goal setting, capacity, discharge planning

What repeats

• Spinal cord level → function → equipment. C5, C6, C7, T1, T10 and L2 each have an expected outcome.
• Autonomic dysreflexia — recognise and act in the correct order.
• Rancho levels and the intervention appropriate at each.
• Gait deviations — the prosthetic or orthotic cause of each classic deviation.
• Spasticity ladder — oral agents, botulinum toxin, intrathecal baclofen, and the side effects of each.
• Bladder management by lesion type — upper vs lower motor neurone patterns.
• Dysphagia screening and diet modification after stroke.
• Electrodiagnosis basics — nerve conduction and EMG patterns in common conditions (physiatrists report these in many Gulf hospitals).
• Exercise prescription — FITT principles, cardiac rehabilitation safety thresholds.
• Pressure injury staging and prevention.

The physiatrist in a Gulf rehabilitation team

Gulf rehabilitation hospitals are built on the North American model: the physiatrist admits, sets goals, leads the multidisciplinary meeting and discharges, while physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, rehabilitation nurses, prosthetists and psychologists deliver treatment. Electrodiagnostic testing, botulinum toxin injection, ultrasound-guided musculoskeletal injection and intrathecal baclofen management are privileged separately on documented training and are the procedures that most affect private-sector earnings. Insurance approval for inpatient rehabilitation is a routine part of the job, so documentation skills matter.

Process

1. Portal registration and title selection.
2. DataFlow verification of the primary degree, the PM&R qualification, registration and experience (guide, fees).
3. Eligibility, booking (lead times), exam — Prometric for most authorities, Pearson VUE for DOH.
4. Offer, credentialing and activation. Tier 1 holders may be exempt from the paper (exemptions guide).

Salaries

Specialist physiatrists in the UAE typically earn AED 35,000–55,000 a month and Consultants AED 55,000–95,000; rehabilitation hospital medical directors and physiatrists with electrodiagnostic and interventional privileges sit at the top. Saudi packages run SAR 30,000–52,000 for Specialists with housing; Qatar is comparable. Because the specialty is scarce, offers often move quickly. Compare in the salary calculator and register in the talent pool.

Eight-week plan

1. Weeks 1–2: spinal cord injury and brain injury — the two reference-text areas.
2. Week 3: stroke and neurorehabilitation.
3. Week 4: amputation, prosthetics, orthotics and gait.
4. Week 5: musculoskeletal, pain and electrodiagnosis.
5. Week 6: paediatric, rheumatological and orthopaedic rehabilitation.
6. Week 7: cardiac, pulmonary, burns, oncology, geriatrics, ethics and safety.
7. Week 8: two timed mocks from the PM&R question bank.

Frequently asked questions

What is the pass mark for the Prometric physical medicine and rehabilitation exam?

65%. The paper has 150 single-best-answer questions in three hours, so 98 correct answers are needed.

Is a physiatrist the same as a physiotherapist in the Gulf?

No. A physiatrist is a physician with a postgraduate qualification in physical medicine and rehabilitation who leads the rehabilitation team. Physiotherapists are allied health professionals with a separate licence and exam.

Which PM&R topics are tested most?

Spinal cord injury levels and complications, brain injury recovery levels, stroke rehabilitation, prosthetic prescription and gait deviations, spasticity management and electrodiagnosis basics.

Are rehabilitation doctors in demand in the Gulf?

Yes. New rehabilitation hospitals and long-term care facilities in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar recruit physiatrists continuously, and regional training programmes produce very few.