Medical school and residency influence on choice of an academic career and academic productivity among US neurology faculty.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effectiveness of medical schools and neurology training programs in the United States by determining their contribution to academic neurology in terms of how many graduates choose academic careers and their respective influence on current medical knowledge through bibliometric analysis.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Biographical information from current faculty members of neurology training programs in the United States was obtained through an Internet-based search of departmental Web sites. Collected variables included medical school attended, residency program completed, and current academic rank. For each faculty member, ISI Web of Science and Scopus h -indices were also collected.

RESULTS

Data from academic neurologists from 120 training programs with 3249 faculty members were collected. All data regarding training program and medical school education were compiled and analyzed by the institution from which each individual graduated. The 20 medical schools and neurology residency training programs producing the greatest number of graduates remaining in academic practice and the mean h -indices are reported. More medical school graduates of the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons chose to enter academic neurology practice than the graduates of any other institution. Analyzed by residency training program attended, New York Presbyterian Hospital (Columbia University), Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minnesota), and Mount Sinai Medical Center (New York, New York) produced the most graduates remaining in academics.

CONCLUSIONS

This retrospective, longitudinal cohort study examines through quantitative measures the academic productivity and rank of academic neurologists. The results demonstrate that several training programs excel in producing a significantly higher proportion of academically active neurologists.