Getting residents involved in research: a challenge in the era of managed care

The changing climate of health care, with the associated increasing financial constraints, challenges faculty and residents to find time for mentoring and pursuing research. Departments and institutions can encourage residents to conduct research by assuring them that they have a supportive infrastructure. Only when the institution and faculty value research will residents do the same. More than half of academic surgeons spend less than 20% of their effort in research; how can residency programs expect residents to enthusiastically pursue research when members of the teaching faculty are themselves not writing and publishing? If the ACGME is serious about asking residents to devote their time and energy to becoming more active in research activities, we must be prepared to decrease service commitments, and we must provide clinically active mentors and visible career models.