303 - Are there sex and racial differences in academic productivity within physiatry?

Doximity was used to identify the top 10 physical medicine and rehabilitation residency programs. The official program websites were used to identify faculty members with an MD, DO, MBBS, degree or equivalent, and their academic ranking. Racial background was determined using manual review including faculty name and appearance. H-index was obtained through Google Scholar and Research Gate, and if there were discrepancies, the higher h-index was used.

Results: Two hundred and seventy faculty members were reviewed, of which the majority held assistant professor rank (n=159, 58.89%), followed by professor (n=56, 20.74%) and associate (n=55, 20.37%). Professors were predominantly male (n=39, 69.6%), associates were evenly split (male n=31, 56.4%) and assistant professors were predominantly female (n=91, 57.2%, p< 0.001). The majority of professors (78.6%), associate professors (65.5%) and assistant professors (52.8%) were white (p=0.009); with the most racial diversity among assistant professors (30.8% Asian, 2.5% African American, 2.5% Hispanic). Average h-index was 9.28 for assistant professors, 17.28 for associate and 49.84 for professors (p< 0.001). H-index was lower among female professors compared to male (35 vs. 55.65, p=0.05), but did not vary at lower academic ranks. No differences in h-index and race by academic rank were noted. Those with assistant professor rank had lower utilization of Google Scholar (70.4%), and Research Gate (75.5%) accounts.

Conclusions:

Female faculty had lower academic rankings, and lower h-index compared to their male counterparts at the professor level. Racial diversity is greater in the lower academic ranks; however this did not impact academic metrics. Further data collection is needed.