Musculoskeletal Medicine and PainORIGINAL ARTICLE

An analysis of publication trends of orthopedic surgery residency graduates in relation to academic achievement

Marvin Carr, BS, OMS III; J. Michael Anderson, BS, OMS IV; Samuel Shepard, BS, OMS III; James Hobbs, BS, OMS III; Corbin Walters, BS, OMS IV; Austin L. Johnson, BS, OMS IV; and Matt Vassar, PhD
Notes and Affiliations
Notes and Affiliations

Received: August 1, 2021

Accepted: December 7, 2021

Published: January 27, 2022

  • Marvin Carr, BS, OMS III, 

    Office of Medical Student Research, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA

  • J. Michael Anderson, BS, OMS IV, 

    Office of Medical Student Research, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA

  • Samuel Shepard, BS, OMS III, 

    Office of Medical Student Research, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA

  • James Hobbs, BS, OMS III, 

    Office of Medical Student Research, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA

  • Corbin Walters, BS, OMS IV, 

    Office of Medical Student Research, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA

  • Austin L. Johnson, BS, OMS IV, 

    Office of Medical Student Research, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA

  • Matt Vassar, PhD, 

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA

J Osteopath Med; 122(4): 195-202
Abstract

Context: Traditionally, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) requires residency programs to implement research and other scholarly activities into their training curriculum. Encouraging residents to publish during residency is believed to promote research throughout their careers; however, no study has attempted to quantify research productivity among orthopedic surgery residents before, during, and after residency.

Objectives: To determine whether publishing in peer-reviewed journals during orthopedic residencies was an indicator of continued academic achievement after graduation.

Methods: This study was observational in nature and employed a cross-sectional design. We examined whether research outcomes during orthopedic residency was associated with academic advancement or continued research involvement after residency. We identified 201 orthopedic residency programs on the Doximity website and randomly selected 50 to include in our sample. Of these programs, graduate rosters for 31 programs were located and subsequently included. Of the 341 graduates identified, we recorded the number of peer-reviewed publications, H-indices, fellowships, and whether the graduate pursued a career in private practice or academia.

Results: Orthopedic residency graduates from 31 programs published a total of 1923 peer-reviewed manuscripts. On average, residents had a total of 5.6 publications and an h-index of 3.2. Residents entering academia and pursuing fellowships had a significantly higher total number of publications, higher number of first-author publications, and greater H-indices compared to those who did not enter academia or pursue a fellowship.

Conclusions: Increased research productivity was associated with continued academic pursuits and an increased likelihood of pursuing fellowship training after residency.

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