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Practice Patterns in Pediatric Critical Care Medicine: Results of a Workforce Survey
Carrie L Radabaugh1, Holly S Ruch-Ross, Carley L Riley
11Department of Education, American Academy of Pediatrics, Elk Grove Village, IL. 2Consultant to the Department of Education, American Academy of Pediatrics, Elk Grove Village, IL. 3Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, Yale University School of Medicine; Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital, New Haven, CT. 4Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine & Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston, Atlanta, GA. 5Milton and Bernice Stern Department of Pediatrics, Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, NY. 6Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA. 7Division of Critical Care Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. 8Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT. 9Fortin Pediatric Specialty Clinic, St. Vincent Healthcare, Billings, MT.
Insights
Current pediatric critical care medicine workforce data reveal a potential undersupply. The survey highlights typical intensivist demographics, work hours, and responsibilities, with a notable increase in female physicians.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Critical Care Medicine
- Medical Workforce Analysis
- Physician Practice Patterns
Background:
- The pediatric critical care medicine (PCCM) workforce is essential for managing critically ill children.
- Understanding current practice patterns is crucial for addressing potential workforce shortages and ensuring adequate patient care.
- Previous workforce data may not reflect recent demographic and professional shifts within the field.
Purpose of the Study:
- To gather contemporary data on the practice characteristics of the U.S. pediatric critical care medicine workforce.
- To identify demographic trends, work environments, and professional activities of PCCM physicians.
- To assess factors contributing to physician satisfaction and burnout within the specialty.
Main Methods:
- A survey was electronically administered to active members of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Critical Care and individuals certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in PCCM.
- Data extraction by a doctorate-level researcher included demographics, work environment, hours, training, clinical duties, satisfaction, burnout, and retention intentions.
- A response rate of 49.7% (923/1857) was achieved, providing a substantial dataset for analysis.
Main Results:
- The majority of respondents were white, male, non-Hispanic, university-employed, and involved in resident teaching.
- Full-time intensivists reported a median of 15 weeks/year on clinical service, responsibility for 13 ICU beds, and worked 60 hours/week.
- Median night call responsibility was 60 nights/year, with about half involving in-hospital duties; less than half engaged in research, and there was an increased proportion of female physicians compared to earlier data.
Conclusions:
- The study provides a current description of the typical pediatric intensivist and the overall PCCM workforce.
- Findings suggest a potential mild-to-moderate undersupply of pediatric critical care physicians.
- The data are valuable for assessing the current state and informing future workforce planning in pediatric critical care medicine.
Objective:
To obtain current data on practice patterns of the U.S. pediatric critical care medicine workforce.
Data Sources:
Membership of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Critical Care and individuals certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in pediatric critical care medicine.
Study Selection:
All active members of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Critical Care, and nonduplicative individuals certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in pediatric critical care medicine, were classified as eligible to participate in this electronically administered workforce survey.
Data Extraction:
Data were extracted by a doctorate-level research professional. Extracted data included demographic information, work environment, number of hours worked, training, clinical responsibilities, work satisfaction and burnout, and plans to leave the practice of pediatric critical care medicine.
Data Synthesis:
Of 1,857 individuals contacted, 923 completed the survey (49.7%). The majority of respondents were white, male, non-Hispanic, university-employed, and taught residents. Respondents who worked full time were on clinical intensive care service for a median of 15 wk/yr and responsible for a median of 13 ICU beds, working a median of 60 hr/wk. Total night call responsibility was a median of 60 nights/yr; about half of respondents indicated night call was in-hospital. Fewer than half were engaged in basic science or clinical research. Compared with earlier data, there was minimal change in work hours and proportion of time devoted to research, but there was an increase in the proportion of female pediatric critical care medicine physicians.
Conclusions:
These data provide a description of the typical intensivist and a snapshot of the current pediatric critical care medicine workforce, which may be experiencing a mild-to-moderate undersupply. The results are useful for assessing the current workforce and valuable for future planning.
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