Attitudes of Radiology Program Directors Toward MD-PhD Trainees, Resident Research Productivity, and Dedicated Research Time

Abstract

Rationale and objectives: The percentage of clinical scientists in radiology has historically been low. Increasing the pipeline of trainees interested in research could occur by recruiting MD-PhD trainees and providing protected research time during residency. The purpose of this work is to assess the attitudes of radiology program directors toward MD-PhD trainees, resident research productivity, and dedicated research time.

Methods: An online survey was sent to residency program directors of all diagnostic radiology departments that received National Institutes of Health (NIH) awards in 2014 (n = 63). Survey questions included program size; perception of overall performance, clinical performance, and research productivity of MD-PhD residents compared to non-PhD residents; and presence of dedicated research time. Responses comparing MD-PhD residents to non-PhD residents were reported as a five-point Likert scale. Student t test was used to assess for significance (alpha = 0.05).

Results: Response rate was 37%. Clinical performance of MD-PhD residents was judged inferior (P < .05) to non-PhD residents, although that of all residents engaged in research trended toward superiority compared to those not involved in research. Dedicated research time is offered by 61% of programs in years R1-R3 and all programs in year R4. Research productivity during residency was judged to be similar (P = .5) between MD-PhD and non-PhD residents.

Conclusions: Survey results suggest that clinical performance during residency and research involvement is often individually based and difficult to generalize based on prior PhD training. All programs offered dedicated research time, and the vast majority of residents were reported to engage in research during residency, which may increase the pipeline of trainees interested in an academic career.

Keywords: MD-PhD trainees; Radiology resident education; dedicated resident research time.