Academic workforce trends in community hospitals.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Health Workforce Research
• Obstetrics and Gynecology

Background:

• Previous obstetrician-gynecologist faculty workforce studies focused exclusively on university training programs.
• Limited data exists regarding the composition and characteristics of faculty within community-based training programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the obstetrician-gynecologist faculty workforce in community training programs.
• To compare community faculty demographics with existing data from university programs.

Main Methods:

• Surveys were administered to department chairs of community obstetrician-gynecologist training programs.
• Data collected included faculty numbers by degree, work status, rank, and sub-specialty.
• A 52% response rate was achieved from 125 surveyed programs.

Main Results:

• Community departments reported a mean of 17 full-time faculty.
• A majority of chairs anticipated an increase in both full-time and part-time faculty.
• Male faculty were more prevalent among sub-specialists and professors, mirroring university trends.

Conclusions:

• The faculty workforce in community obstetrician-gynecologist programs shares similarities with university programs.
• A significant portion of community faculty actively participate in research activities.
• Continuous monitoring and study of community program faculty are essential due to increasing demands.