George Melissa R, Markwood Madeleine, Rojiani Amyn M
Department of Pathology, Penn State Health Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA.
Association of Pathology Chairs, Wilmington, DE, USA.
Acad Pathol. 2023 Feb 1;10(1):100061. doi: 10.1016/j.acpath.2022.100061. eCollection 2023 Jan-Mar.
Academic pathology departments across the United States vary greatly in terms of size, clinical workloads and research activity. It is therefore not surprising that their chairs may be an equally diverse group. However, to our knowledge, little is formally known about the "phenotype" (academic credentials, leadership background, and subspecialty focus) or career pathways of these individuals. Using a survey tool, this study sought to determine whether or not dominant phenotypes or trends. Several predominant findings emerged including: race (80% Whites), gender (68% males), dual degrees (41% MD/PhDs), years in practice (56% being in practice >15 years at time of first chair appointment), rank upon appointment (88% holding the rank of professor), and funded research (67% holding research funding). While Anatomic and Clinical Pathology (AP/CP) certified chairs represented 46% of the cohort, 30% were AP-only and another 10% were Anatomic Pathology and Neuropathology (AP/NP) certified. For subspecialty focus, neuropathology (13%) and molecular pathology (15%) were disproportionately represented compared to the general population of pathologists. Previous leadership roles on the path to chairmanship included vice chair (41%), division chief (39%), residency program director (29%), or fellowship director (27%). Many (41%) had not participated in any formal business or leadership training. This information may influence training or experience pursued by individuals aspiring to academic pathology leadership. It also highlights the challenges of suboptimal diversity in race and gender, as well as the professional backgrounds of academic pathology chairs and may suggest consideration of alternate pathways to leadership.
美国各地的学术病理科在规模、临床工作量和研究活动方面差异很大。因此，这些科室的主任可能也是一个同样多样化的群体，这并不奇怪。然而，据我们所知，对于这些人的“表型”（学术资历、领导背景和亚专业重点）或职业发展路径，人们知之甚少。本研究使用一种调查工具，试图确定是否存在占主导地位的表型或趋势。出现了几个主要发现，包括：种族（80%为白人）、性别（68%为男性）、双学位（41%为医学博士/哲学博士）、从业年限（56%在首次担任主任时已从业超过15年）、任职时的职级（88%为教授职级）以及获得资助的研究（67%拥有研究经费）。虽然解剖与临床病理学（AP/CP）认证的主任占该队列的46%，但30%仅为AP认证，另有10%为解剖病理学和神经病理学（AP/NP）认证。就亚专业重点而言，与病理学家的总体人群相比，神经病理学（13%）和分子病理学（15%）的占比过高。担任主任职位之前的领导角色包括副主任（41%）、科室主任（39%）、住院医师培训项目主任（29%）或 fellowship 主任（27%）。许多人（41%）没有参加过任何正式的业务或领导力培训。这些信息可能会影响有志于担任学术病理学界领导职务的人的培训或经历。它还凸显了种族和性别多样性不足的挑战，以及学术病理科主任的专业背景，并可能建议考虑其他领导途径。
