Ranking United States Plastic Surgery Residency Programs Based on Academic Achievement of Faculty Members

Abstract

Introduction The Doximity Residency Navigator is currently the only resource that ranks plastic surgery residency programs. Given the paucity of objective program rankings, in this study, we devised a new algorithm to rank plastic surgery programs based on academic achievement of faculty members. Methods The Fellowship and Residency Electronic Interactive Database was used to obtain the following information on plastic surgery programs: the amount of 2017 National Institute of Health and Veterans Administration funding, lifetime and 5-year faculty h-indices, and the number of faculty on editorial boards of journals. Based on all of this information, an overall ranking of the top 25 plastic surgery programs was created. Results The top program for annual National Institutes of Health and Veteran Affairs funding was the University of Southern California (integrated and independent). The top programs for faculty lifetime h-index were the University of Michigan (integrated) and New York University (independent). The top program for faculty 5-year h-index was the University of Pennsylvania (integrated and independent). The top program for the number of faculty members who are on the editorial boards of major journals was Harvard University (integrated and independent). The top program overall was Harvard University (integrated and independent). Conclusion We ranked plastic surgery residency programs based on objective data related to faculty academic achievement. Academic achievement rankings are just one of numerous other factors that medical students should synthesize when making informed decisions when applying to residency.

The Medical Student Race to Research

“…Students who attend medical schools with smaller plastic surgery divisions with less or even no NIH funding have fewer research mentors and less financial support, making research opportunities less accessible. In fact, ranking surgical residency programs by NIH funding as a proxy for research activity has been suggested in the literature 14,17 . Supporting this hypothesis, Roy et al 6 found a positive correlation between publication numbers and institution NIH funding, and our study demonstrates that having greater plastic surgery NIH funding independently increases one's odds of presenting at least 3 times by more than 3-fold.…”

“…In fact, ranking surgical residency programs by NIH funding as a proxy for research activity has been suggested in the literature. 14,17 Supporting this hypothesis, Roy et al 6 found a positive correlation between publication numbers and institution NIH funding, and our study demonstrates that having greater plastic surgery NIH funding independently increases one's odds of presenting at least 3 times by more than 3-fold. This disadvantage is further heightened for students without plastic surgery residency programs at their institutions.…”

“…For schools with home plastic surgery residency programs, the NIH funding of the plastic surgery division/department was calculated by summing all rewards listed on the NIH RePORTER database for all full-time faculty as previously described. 14 Completion of a research fellowship was suspected if the presenter's affiliate institution and school differed and confirmed by Google search. Previous presentation at ASPS, AAPS, or PSRC was determined by searching for presenter name in meeting archives over the past 5 years.…”

“…For US medical schools, whether there was a home integrated or independent plastic surgery residency program was determined from the American Council of Academic Plastic Surgeons web site listings. For schools with home plastic surgery residency programs, the NIH funding of the plastic surgery division/department was calculated by summing all rewards listed on the NIH RePORTER database for all full-time faculty as previously described 14 . Completion of a research fellowship was suspected if the presenter's affiliate institution and school differed and confirmed by Google search.…”

Discussion: Beyond the Scalpel: Attracting and Nurturing Surgeon-Scientists in Plastic Surgery

“…8 Those residency programs that do have research years may not always have adequate teaching of academic skills or plastic surgery faculty mentors who have records of academic and funding success. 9 Institutions, research sponsors, and clinical leaders need to align the academic goals of the residents and faculty members with their professional responsibilities and measures of success. Progress in meeting one's academic goals needs to be assessed longitudinally, and adequate resources need to be committed to help the resident or faculty reach their academic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery • February 2022 goals.…”