Abstract: Effect of Research Grant Funding on Academic Productivity in Plastic Surgery (Plastic Surgery 2015)

Saturday, October 17, 2015

Paul J Therattil, MD , Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

Aditya Sood, MD, MBA , Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

Stella Chung, BA , Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

Mark S Granick, MD , Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

Edward S Lee, MD , Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

Presentation PDF file

E-Poster

Purpose:

The Plastic Surgery Foundation (PSF) funds investigators annually to augment their ability to produce efficacious research. The h-index is a measure that assesses the quantity and significance of an individual’s academic contributions. The objective of this study was to determine whether receiving funding through a PSF grant results in increased research productivity as measured by the h-index, and what factors might affect the ability to receive such a grant.

Methods and Materials:

The PSF listing of funding appropriations was utilized to determine which surgeons have received grants between 2003-2013. The Scopus database was queried to determine each surgeon’s current h-index and their h-index at the time of grant funding. Data analysis was performed to determine whether research productivity increased after grant funding, and to determine what factors predict research productivity.

Results:

Sixty-seven out of 592 US academic plastic surgeons in our study received PSF grants from 2003-2013. Of those receiving funding, 32.8% (22/67) received more than one PSF grant. The mean current h-index for all plastic surgeons that received a PSF grant was 12.91 and 8.46 for those who did not (p < 0.05). At the time of PSF grant award, the mean h-index for single-grant awardees was 6.43, which increased after grant funding to a current mean of 10.70 (p < 0.05). Of surgeons receiving grants, 77.6% came from a division/department with multiple grant recipients. On multivariate regression analysis, PSF grant funding was a predictor of increased academic productivity as measured by the h-index (p< 0.05).

Conclusions:

Plastic surgeons receiving a PSF grant have higher academic productivity compared to those plastic surgeons that have not received funding. Receiving a PSF grant appears to result in increased research productivity over time. Those surgeons who receive PSF grant funding tend to come from divisions/departments with multiple grant recipients and with higher departmental academic productivity.

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