Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Websites: Information Considered Most Important to Fellowship Applicants.
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ABSTRACT: Introduction
The purpose of this study was to determine which components of sports medicine fellowships are most important to applicants when reviewing fellowship websites during the application process.Methods
An anonymous survey was distributed to 492 fellowship applicants from the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 cycles. The survey included questions about the importance of including components of fellow education, recruitment, and experience on program websites. The weighted average of responses determined each component's rank, with 5 being "very important" and 1 being "not at all important." Responses were analyzed by application cycle, current position, and sex using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test.Results
Sixty-five applicants participated in the survey and completed the demographics section, resulting in a 13.2% response rate. According to participants, the most important components to include on fellowship websites were exposure to advanced operative sports medicine techniques (weighted average, 4.62), complexity of cases performed (4.52), and number of cases performed (4.50). Analysis demonstrated statistically significant differences in opinion between application cycles for flexibility for conducting a remote interview (P = .0074), jobs obtained by previous fellows (P = .019), national rank of department (P = .021), program's geographic location (P = .026), protected academic time (P = .038), current positions for criteria for fellows' performance evaluations (P = .028), program's geographic location (P = .0097), and protected academic time (P = .0079). There were statistically significant differences in opinion between current positions regarding flexibility for conducting a remote interview (P = .0026), jobs obtained by previous fellows (P = .012), and national rank of department (P = .0013).Conclusions
Orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship applicants believe that it is most important to include information about the volume and complexity of fellows' cases and their day-to-day commitments on program websites.Clinical relevance
This information would enable applicants to identify programs that will support professional development and allow program directors to communicate expectations.
SUBMITTER: McEvoy CM
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8220630 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:PurposeTo understand the opinions of both orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship program directors (PDs) and applicants regarding the utility of virtual interviews in comparison to in-person interviews following the 2022-2023 application cycle.MethodsAn anonymous online survey was distributed through the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine to applicants and PDs of orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship programs. Questions in the survey included how the virtual format affected the applicants' personal connection to the program, the interview day structure, and costs associated with the interview process.ResultsResponses were received from 69 of 93 PDs (74%) and 97 of 266 applicants (36%). Ninety-five percent of PDs (59 of 62) preferred in-person interviews, compared to 79% of applicants (70 of 89). Ninety-eight percent of PDs (60 of 61) and 82% of applicants (72 of 88) thought it was important/very important to interview in-person. Sixty-one percent of PDs (35 of 57) and 49% of applicants agreed/strongly agreed that conducting virtual interviews negatively affected their personal connection with the fellowship interviewee/program. The presence of virtual interviews allowed 50% (43 of 86) of applicants to go on more interviews. Thirty-two percent (18 of 57) of fellowship programs saved up to $5,000 conducting virtual interviews, and 85% (69 of 81) of applicants saved up to $5,000 on travel expenses by attending virtual interviews.ConclusionsVirtual interviews allow fellowship applicants to complete more interviews and presented financial savings for both programs and applicants. However, both PDs and applicants stated that interviewing in-person is essential for applicants to meet faculty and tour the facilities.Clinical relevanceThis study may be valuable to fellowship programs considering continued use of virtual interviews.
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Project description:PurposeTo determine the top orthopaedic surgery sports medicine fellowship programs in the United States and the most important aspects of fellowship programs as perceived by applicants.MethodsAn anonymous survey was distributed via e-mail and text message to all current/former orthopaedic surgery residents who applied to one particular orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship program during the 2017-2018 through 2021-2022 application cycles. The survey asked applicants to rank what they considered to be the top-10 orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship programs in the United States before and after completion of their application cycle, based on operative and nonoperative experience, faculty, game coverage, research, and work-life balance. Final rank was calculated by awarding 10 points for a first-place vote, 9 points for a second-place vote, etc., with total number of points used to determine final ranking for each program. Secondary outcomes included rates of applying to perceived top-10 programs, relative importance of different fellowship program aspects, and preferred type of practice.ResultsSeven-hundred sixty-one surveys were distributed with 107 applicants responding (14% response rate). Applicants voted the top orthopaedic sports medicine fellowships programs to be: (1) Steadman Philippon Research Institute, (2) Rush University Medical Center, and (3) Hospital for Special Surgery, both before and following the application cycle. When ranking fellowship program aspects, faculty members and fellowship reputation were most likely to be ranked highest in importance.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that most orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship applicants highly valued program reputation and faculty members when choosing a fellowship program and that the application/interview process did not have a substantial effect on how individuals perceived the top programs.Clinical relevanceThe findings of this study are important for residents applying to orthopaedic sports medicine fellowships and may have implications on fellowship programs and future application cycles.
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Project description:PurposeTo determine the objective characteristics of fellowship directors (FDs) in orthopaedic sports medicine by focusing on the demographics, academic background, institutional history, research experience, and professional affiliations of FDs in this field.MethodsData was collected for each FD via institutional biographies or publicly available curriculum vitae (CV). The data collected for each FD included age, gender, race/ethnicity, previous training institutions, residency and fellowship graduation years, additional advanced degrees, military affiliation, institutional loyalty, year hired by current institution, career timeline, Scopus H-index, number of publications, and total number of citations.ResultsOf the 88 FDs, 87 (98.9%) were male and 1 (1.1%) was female. The mean age for all FDs was 54.7 years (± 9.1 standard deviation). The majority of FDs were White (n = 80; 90.9%). The mean Scopus H-index, total number of publications, and total number of citations were 22.5 ± 16.6, 90.0 ± 91.6, and 2773.9 ± 3962.9, respectively. On average, it took 9.5 ± 7.3 years from fellowship graduation until FD appointment. Additionally, the mean number of years of employment or affiliation with the current institution was 17.2 ± 9.4, and the mean number of years in an FD role was 10.9 ± 9.3.ConclusionOrthopaedic sports medicine fellowship directors are largely distinguished by their high level of research productivity and accomplishment. Additionally, orthopaedic training pedigree seems to play a role in FD role attainment, with a handful of orthopaedic residency and sports medicine fellowship programs producing a large percentage of current FDs. Finally, FDs are overwhelmingly white males with little female or minority representation.Clinical relevanceThis study outlines some of the most important characteristics among orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship directors and identifies racial and gender disparities within this population of leaders that may have detrimental effects on the field as a whole.
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Project description:Background Orthopaedic surgery trainees who aim to specialize in total joint arthroplasty commonly complete an additional year of fellowship training. Limited information regarding individual programs is readily available to potential applicants. The purpose of this study is to determine what information applicants value when considering an adult reconstruction fellowship program. Methods An anonymous survey was distributed to all 470 junior members of AAHKS. The 12-question survey gathered demographic information as well as average weighted scores (1-10) of various components regarding fellowship education, recruitment, and experiences. Subgroup analysis was performed on survey responses based on the following 3 different categories: Gender, year of training, and geographical location. Results A total of 135 respondents completed the survey (135 of 470, 28.7% response rate). Sixty-two (45.9%) participants held the position of postgraduate year 5, 43 (31.9%) participants held the position of postgraduate year 4. Exposure to operative techniques in revision surgery (9.62), exposure to operative techniques in primary surgery (9.51), and ability to obtain desired job opportunity after fellowship (8.89) were the 3 most considered components. Higher level trainees valued information regarding average number of hours worked relative to junior trainees (P = .046). Geographic differences were noted in the following 3 variables: the number of cases performed (P = .010), whether fellows had a dedicated clinic and/or operating room (P = .002), and the average number of hours worked (P = .020). Conclusions Amongst the 3 domains studied, applicants most valued educational components, such as exposure to various techniques surrounding total joint arthroplasty. There is a need for a centralized, comprehensive database that contains information applicants value most and this database should be customizable toward training level and location.
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Project description:Purpose To determine the proportion of faculty members at the top orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship programs who completed a fellowship at one of these programs themselves, how many remained at their fellowship training programs as an attending (institutional loyalty), where they most commonly completed residency and medical school, and to characterize their research productivity. Methods The fellowship programs of current orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship faculty members at each of the top 10 orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship programs (based on a recent study) were determined by searching program websites or contacting program coordinators. For each program, we determined the proportion of faculty members who completed fellowship at one of these top 10 programs and the proportion who remained at their fellowship program as an attending. Residency and medical school information was found for faculty members on their professional websites. To determine research output, each faculty member’s name was searched within the Scopus database and the number of publications was recorded. Results Data were obtained from each of the top 10 sports medicine fellowship programs. Fifty-eight of 82 (70.7%) fellowship faculty members completed fellowship at a top 10 program. Regarding institutional loyalty, 36 of 82 (43.9%) fellowship faculty members remained at the program where they trained, with one program led entirely by alumni. The average number of publications per faculty member was 130.6, with a range among the 10 programs of 23-355.8. Conclusions Most orthopaedic sports medicine fellowship faculty at the top perceived training programs completed a fellowship at one of these same programs and maintain high research productivity. Clinical Relevance Orthopaedic surgery trainees who wish to become faculty members at one of the top orthopaedic sports medicine training programs should aim to match into one of these top programs when applying for fellowship.
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Project description:Purpose The purpose of this study was to report demographic trends in terms of ethnicity/race and gender among the membership and leadership positions of the Arthroscopy Association of North America (AANA) and the American Orthopaedic Society of Sports Medicine (AOSSM). Over the years both AANA and AOSSM will increase in diversity through their committee membership and leadership positions. Methods AANA and AOSSM membership and leadership were reviewed for the years 2010, 2015, and 2020. Race/ethnicity was divided into Caucasian, Asian, African American (AA), Hispanic/Latin/South American (HLSA), and Middle Eastern (ME). Gender was limited to male or female, based on name and photographic depiction. Results Diversity in AANA and AOSSM committee and leadership positions is summarized in Table 1 and Table 2, respectively. In 2010, 166/191 (87%) AANA committee members were Caucasian, as compared with 125/186 (67%) in 2020. Asian committee members were similar in 2010 (13/191, 7%) and 2015 (13/216, 6%) but increased to 17/186 (10%) in 2020. HLSA committee members increased from 5/191 (3%) 2010 to 11/186 (6%) in 2020. AA committee membership increased from 2/191 (1%) in 2010 to 5/186 (3%) in 2020. The diversity of AANA Board of Director leadership positions increased, with Caucasian representation decreasing from 14/14 (100%) 2010 to 11/12 (92%) in 2020 and Asian representation increasing from 0% in 2010 to 1/12 (8%) in 2020, with HLSA, AA and ME remaining the same with 0/12 (0%). In AANA, men comprised 181/191 (95%) committee members in 2010 and 166/186 (89%) in 2020. The percentage of female committee members increased from 10/191 (5%) in 2010 to 20/186 (11%) in 2020. In 2010, 73/79 (92%) AOSSM committee members were Caucasian compared to 62/81 (77%) in 2020 with AA having the largest increase in committee members from 0% in 2010 to 6/81 (7%) in 2020 (Table 2). Within AOSSM, men comprised 73/79 (92%) committee members in 2010 and 70/81 (86%) in 2020. The percentage of female committee members in AOSSM increased from 6/79 (8%) in 2010 to 11/81 (14%) in 2020. Conclusion There has been a progressive trend toward increasing diversity in both committee membership and leadership positions in AANA and AOSSM from 2010 to 2020. Within AANA, there has been a decrease in the Caucasian representation from 87% in 2010 to 67% in 2020 and an increase in the female representation from 5% in 2010 to 11% in 2020. AOSSM demonstrated a similar trend, with Caucasian representation decreasing from 92% in 2010 to 77% in 2020, in addition to female percentage increasing from 8% in 2010 to 14% in 2020. Although there has been an increase in representation of minority and female orthopaedic surgeons within both societies, there is still room for more diversity and inclusion within committee membership and leadership. It is important to progress toward the understanding of the changes that need to be made and work to implement opening the field of orthopaedic sports medicine.
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