Academic and Clinical Background of Plastic Surgery Residents of the Saudi Training Program

Abstract

Background: Plastic surgery residents are required to contribute to the scientific milieu, apart from honing their surgical skills. Data regarding their academic and clinical background are limited locally in comparison with their counterparts. This is the first study of its kind on the Saudi training program, with suggested potential solutions to shortcomings. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study based on an electronic, 27-element, self-administered questionnaire sent to a WhatsApp group gathering all 40 plastic surgery residents of the Saudi program, with the exclusion of a single participant. Results: The mean of overall residents’ publications was 2.29 articles. No significant difference ( P = 0.438) was found in the number of publications among residents of different levels. However, seniors have published significantly ( P = 0.002) more articles (mean = 1.6; SD = 1.24) during residency compared with juniors (mean = 0.42; SD = 1). The group that had taken rotations in plastic surgery abroad published more articles ( P = 0.02) than the group that did not. Using η correlation, a positive correlation ( η = 0.36) was found between taking courses in research and publication. Conclusions: The Saudi plastic surgery residents are ahead of their colleagues in other local specialties but fall behind their counterparts internationally. The relatively poor contribution in terms of research, posters, and oral presentations could be remedied with measures such as providing protected research time and mentorship. They should be emboldened to pursue postgraduate studies, as only 3 residents had a Master of Science degree.

The Ideal Applicant to the Saudi Plastic Surgery Residency Program

“…All current Saudi plastic surgery residents, as reported by Shah Mardan et al, had some form of experience upon entry to residency training. 12 More than two-thirds of the directors look for familiar aspiring residents, hence they prefer candidates who took electives/rotations at their institution. 8 Contrary to common belief, most of the program directors in our cohort look for applicants with background knowledge in plastic surgery; this can be achieved especially in rotations and electives.…”

“…It was reported that current Saudi plastic surgery residents published a mean of 1.4 articles during medical school, before internship. 12 US applicants who successfully matched to plastic surgery from 2012 to 2017 published a mean of 4.1 articles before joining the residency, 14 and research potential and productivity took middle-ground position in importance in the study by Liang et al 3 In the UK, a considerable emphasis was placed on research experience, as half of the applicants who were accepted into plastic surgery had published at least 5 articles in peer-review journals and two-thirds had presented in national or international events, as reported by Opel et al 15 The best approach to the students would be, considering time restriction and other academic priorities, to publish single articles in plastic surgery and then scavenge for high-quality projects, as the number of publications did not correlate with the number of interview invitation, and the only significant increase in the invitation was evident after 1 or 2 publications. 16 …”

“…Although thereof factors are important during the selection process, few traits such as gender play no role locally, where close to 40% of current plastic surgery residents are women. 12 Furthermore, passing other international medical licensing examinations, for instance the United States Medical Licensing Examination, adds no preference to the candidate. Whereas more than half of the respondents in Opel et al study reported undertaking a post-graduate degree, it ranked as the least important factor by our sample, indicating that students should prioritize other endeavors over it.…”

“…Nonetheless, almost all current residents in plastic surgery scored a GPA of 4–4.5 of 5 or 3.5–3.75 of 4 or higher, reflecting rich academic achievements. 12 A number of features could deter the directors from a candidate, including dishonesty, evidence of laziness, arrogance, lack of teamwork skills, being overly money-oriented, lack of dependability, disinterest, and displaying sycophantic, narcissistic, or aggressive attitude. 3 , 18 Although not necessarily deterrent, candidates with evidence of poor academic performance and extremely extrovert or introvert traits were criticized.…”

Assessment of the Academic Productivity of Plastic Surgeons in Saudi Arabia Using the h-index

“…Shah Mardan et al reported that close to 40% of the Saudi plastic surgery trainees are women. 22 Moreover, it is suggested that female physicians tend to surpass their male counterparts in terms of scholarly productivity with age. 23 …”