Demographics and Academic Productivity of Cardiothoracic Imaging Fellowship Program Directors in the United States: A Cross-Sectional Review

Abstract

BackgroundIn this study, we aimed to assess current demographics, measures of academic productivity, and other objective leadership characteristics among United States cardiothoracic imaging fellowship directors (FDs). MethodologyA survey was sent to active members listed in the Society of Thoracic Radiology Cardiothoracic Imaging Fellowship Directory. Demographic, post-graduate training, and scholarly activity data were collected, including, but not limited to, age, sex, residency and fellowship training institutions, time since training completion until FD, length of time as FD, and Hirsch-index (h-index) to measure research activity. ResultsWe identified 53 FDs from 50 cardiothoracic imaging fellowship programs. Of these, 31 (58.5%) were male and 22 (41.5%) were female with an average age of 48.5 years (standard deviation (SD) = 8.4, range = 35-67). There was no statistically significant difference between the mean age of male and female FDs (47.5 vs 50.2 years, p = 0.2811). The mean age of appointment to the FD role was 41.8 years. On average, FDs graduated from residency in 2005 and 2007 for fellowships. Most attended allopathic medical schools (52/53, 98.1%). The average Scopus h-index was 15.7 (SD = 17.4). Gender-wise comparison of mean h-indices revealed 16.2 for males and 15 for females, with no statistically significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.81). Ten (18.9%) FDs and 20 (37.7%) FDs were at the same location they completed residency and fellowship training, respectively. ConclusionsThis cross-sectional study shows the present demographics within the cardiothoracic radiology FD position. This field of radiology is observed to have FDs with research productivity that is comparable with other medical specialties. Some radiology residency and fellowship programs were shown to produce more FDs than others; however, we were not able to identify causality. Program directors appear to be selected from a familiar pool of applicants, and ultimately FDs are being replaced by individuals with similar distinctions. Overall, this research into cardiothoracic radiology FDs demographics and research productivity can add to the current body of literature on FDs in various medical specialties. It is important to continue to reflect on medical leadership as the field continues to advance.

Gynecologic oncology fellowship leadership trends by gender

“…This may be due to factors such as having a larger or more influential network within the institution or the benefit that familiarity with an institution may provide in successfully fulfilling the role of PD ( Van Horne et al ). Some studies have commented on the impact of institutional loyalty on the appointment of PDs across other medical specialties such as cardiothoracic imaging and orthopedic surgery ( Cummings et al, 2023 , Zippi et al, 2022 ) In both of these fields, almost 60% of PDs held positions at institutions where they p.ursued medical education or training ( Cummings et al, 2023 , Zippi et al, 2022 ). This is a higher proportion than our finding for GYO PDs, which may indicate that institutional loyalty plays a more significant role in the appointment of PDs in other fields compared to GYO.…”