Residency Program Directors of United States Ophthalmology Programs: A Descriptive Analysis

Abstract

To analyze the academic background, scholarly achievements, and demographic characteristics of all US ophthalmology residency program directors (PDs). Cross-sectional study. Online search of publicly available resources conducted from February 16, 2019, to February 26, 2019. 116 ophthalmology residency PDs. Main outcome measurements were demographic and academic data. A total of 116 program directors were analyzed. Eighty-four of 116 (72%) PDs were male. The average age was 50.0 years old. The mean age at appointment was 42.9 years old. Ninety-three percent graduated from an American medical school, and 97% received an MD degree. Twenty percent of PDs completed an additional graduate degree, most commonly a master's degree (7 of 23) and doctor of philosophy (7 of 23). Seventy-eight percent completed a fellowship, with the most frequent in glaucoma (24%), cornea and external diseases (22%), and neuroophthalmology (21%). The mean number of publications according to PubMed was 17.6 (range, 0-92). There were no significant differences between the average number of publications by male PDs and those by female PDs (19.2 ± 20.5 vs. 13.5 ± 23.1, respectively; P= 0.21). On average, the H-index was 8.7 (range, 0-35) and was higher in male than in female PDs (9.8 ± 8.3 vs. 5.4 ± 4.0, respectively; P= 0.01). Ophthalmology PDs are predominantly male with fellowship training in glaucoma, cornea, or neuro-ophthalmology. Women remain underrepresented, and future efforts should be aimed at addressing this disparity.