University of Southern California and Los Angeles County + University of Southern California Medical Center, Los Angeles.
Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2019 Apr;71(4):456-460. doi: 10.1002/acr.23691.
Rheumatology has previously been a less attractive career choice than other internal medicine (IM) subspecialties. Recent fellowship data from the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) has suggested that this may have changed. Therefore, we evaluated the current attractiveness of rheumatology as a career choice and compared it with other medical subspecialties.
Data from the NRMP from 2008 to 2017, the 2015 American College of Rheumatology workforce study, and Medscape physician salaries from 2010 to 2017 were used to determine annual numbers of fellowship applicants, availability of positions, and post-fellowship salary trends. Data from 2008 to 2013 were compared with those from 2014 to 2017, and rheumatology was compared with other IM subspecialties.
The total number of annual fellowship applicants to rheumatology for 2008-2013 decreased by 3% (average annual mean ± SEM percentage change of -1.9 ± 2.6%), from 251 to 244 applicants. However, for 2014-2017, annual rheumatology applications increased by 44% (average annual mean ± SEM percentage change of 20.7 ± 10.5% [P = 0.03]), from 230 to 332 applicants. Other nonprocedural and procedural IM subspecialties did not exhibit a similar increase. For rheumatology, the increases in the ratio of annual applicants to positions (P = 0.02) and in the percentage of US medical graduates applying (P = 0.03) were statistically significant, and mean post-fellowship salary also rose.
The aforementioned observations suggest that rheumatology has become a more attractive career choice since 2014. We speculate that the increasing popularity of the field is multifactorial, likely reflecting lifestyle, job satisfaction and availability, influence of mentors, and other elements. This salutary and exciting potential opportunity for rheumatology should be exploited.
风湿病学以前不如其他内科（IM）亚专业有吸引力。国家住院医师匹配计划（NRMP）的最近奖学金数据表明，这种情况可能已经发生了变化。因此，我们评估了风湿病学作为职业选择的当前吸引力，并将其与其他医学亚专业进行了比较。
使用 2008 年至 2017 年的 NRMP 数据、2015 年美国风湿病学会劳动力研究以及 2010 年至 2017 年 Medscape 医师薪资数据，确定每年的奖学金申请人数、职位空缺情况和奖学金后薪资趋势。将 2008 年至 2013 年的数据与 2014 年至 2017 年的数据进行比较，并将风湿病学与其他 IM 亚专业进行比较。
2008-2013 年，风湿病学每年的奖学金申请人数减少了 3%（平均每年平均变化率为-1.9±2.6%），从 251 人减少到 244 人。然而，2014-2017 年，风湿病学的年度申请人数增加了 44%（平均每年平均变化率为 20.7±10.5%[P=0.03]），从 230 人增加到 332 人。其他非程序和程序 IM 亚专业并没有表现出类似的增长。对于风湿病学，每年申请人数与职位比例（P=0.02）和美国医学毕业生申请比例（P=0.03）的增加具有统计学意义，并且毕业后的平均工资也有所上升。
上述观察结果表明，自 2014 年以来，风湿病学已成为一个更有吸引力的职业选择。我们推测，该领域的日益普及是多方面的，可能反映了生活方式、工作满意度和可用性、导师的影响以及其他因素。这是风湿病学的一个有益且令人兴奋的潜在机会，应该加以利用。
