Jaspreet Kaur Seehra, Brett Doleman, Jonathan Lund
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Introduction
The Integrated Academic Training (IAT) pathway was introduced to support surgical academic careers encouraging research integration alongside clinical training. Success of the IAT pathway remains unclear. This study aims to investigate the progression of IAT surgical trainees from Academic Clinical Fellowship (ACF) to Clinical Lecturship (CL) while exploring the impact of gender, age and COVID-19.
Method and Materials
A retrospective cohort study (2016-2024) of 686 academic trainees across 10 surgical specialties was conducted using data from the Joint Committee on Surgical Training (JCST) and ISCP. Statistical analysis was performed using cox proportional hazards and logistic regression models to assess factors influencing progression from ACF to CL. Demographic variables and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic (defined by training start year) were analysed.
Results
Progression from ACF to CL was low (7.3%) with no significant gender differences observed in progression rates (7.62% for men vs 6.32% for women). COVID-19 had a significantly negative impact on progression, with an adjusted odds ratio of 0.09 (95% CI: 0.003-0.30, p < 0.001), indicating a markedly reduced likelihood of progressing during the pandemic era. Specialty had no effect (p = 0.94), and age under 30 showed a trend toward improved progression, though not statistically significant (p = 0.316). Trainees in Paediatric Surgery and Neurosurgery had the longest academic placements.
Conclusion
The surgical IAT pathway has high attrition and unequal progression rates, especially post COVID-19. Despite gender parity in progression rates, systemic issues such as COVID-19, insufficient support and the inequalities in non-run-through training pathways hinder academic career development. Reforms are needed to address these challenges and improve the IAT pathway’s effectiveness in developing a future surgical academic workforce.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Surgical Education (JSE) is dedicated to advancing the field of surgical education through original research. The journal publishes research articles in all surgical disciplines on topics relative to the education of surgical students, residents, and fellows, as well as practicing surgeons. Our readers look to JSE for timely, innovative research findings from the international surgical education community. As the official journal of the Association of Program Directors in Surgery (APDS), JSE publishes the proceedings of the annual APDS meeting held during Surgery Education Week.