Making PRM Irresistible — A Call to Inspire the Next Generation

On 13 November, the International Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine (PRM) Day, the International Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine (ISPRM) and the ISPRM25 Congress are offering a special gift to the global rehabilitation community: the full recording of one of the most inspiring keynotes of the year — “Making PRM Irresistible: Strategies to Inspire and Recruit the Next Generation,” delivered by Professor Maryam Fourtassi (Morocco).

Her talk, which closed the 19th ISPRM World Congress in Marrakesh, was more than a lecture. It was a heartfelt story — a manifesto of passion, mentorship, and belief in the human dimension of medicine.

A Journey of Discovery and Purpose

Professor Fourtassi began by sharing her own path. A top medical graduate with multiple prestigious options, she chose Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine because it was “rare, almost unknown — a chance to build something from scratch.”
The real transformation, however, came during her training in France under her mentor, Professor Gilles Rode, who helped her see PRM in a new light:

“You showed me that my specialty isn’t about muscles, joints, nerves, or function charts — it’s simply about people, about helping them rebuild their lives when life itself has broken something inside.”

Returning home, she found herself fighting daily battles for recognition, funding, and the rights of patients to receive proper rehabilitation.

“For eight years, it was a daily exercise in advocacy and conviction — explaining, defending, sometimes even fighting for our patients’ right to rehabilitation.”

Building a Movement

The turning point came when she began building a new PRM ward in Tangier. With limited resources but boundless belief, she gathered a small team and started to change perceptions.

“Together we started from almost nothing — just two people, one long corridor, and a big dream. Slowly, little by little, we started to be heard. And then the magic of conviction started to spread.”

Students from other, more prestigious specialties — radiology, ENT, endocrinology — began to join her, not for money or fame, but for meaning. “Transformation doesn’t begin with institutions,” she reminded the audience. “It begins with people.”

Five Ways to Make PRM Irresistible

From her story, Prof. Fourtassi distilled five lessons for inspiring and recruiting the next generation of PRM physicians:

1. Redefine PRM – Know Who We Are:
   “Healing is not about fixing what’s broken — it’s about revealing what still works.” PRM exists in the gray space between illness and health, where medicine doesn’t stop when the cure is impossible.
2. Visibility Creates Value:
   The specialty must show its heart. One of her residents chose PRM after seeing videos of their unit on Instagram: “I chose PRM because I saw your videos — and I felt something real.”
3. Embody Respect:
   “Resilience isn’t only endurance; it’s persistence — walking into a system that wasn’t built for you and shaping a space within it.”
4. Excellence Attracts Excellence:
   Her team — a mix of doctors with courage, creativity, and empathy — is, as she calls them, “a constellation of Marvel heroes.”
5. Purpose is the Strongest Motivator:
   When teams share a clear vision, they carry the dream together. To inspire her residents, she took them to visit a leading rehabilitation center in France — to see what PRM could become.

Passing the Torch

The keynote closed with a tribute to her mentor:

“He believed in me before I believed in myself. He gave me trust, space, and encouragement when I needed it most. I can’t pay him back — but I can pay it forward, giving my residents the same chance to grow and shine.”