Factors affecting rank lists of recently matched black residents in orthopaedic surgery residency

The objective of this research study is to evaluate the opinions of recently matched Black orthopaedic surgery residents regarding factors about residency programs that influenced their rank list order, and to compare and contrast the preferences of Black applicants compared to all residency applicants when selecting an orthopedic residency program.

A 13-item questionnaire, looking to identify the factors that influence rank lists, was emailed to the program coordinator at every ACGME-accredited program in the United States in March 2023. This study was conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Department of Orthopedics in New York City. The research was done on a national level, including all of the ACGME-accredited programs in the United States. The questionnaire was instructed to be distributed to all orthopedic surgery residents (4,359 residents in total) and medical students who successfully matched during the 2023 cycle. 190 individuals completed the survey.

190 individuals completed the survey, representing approximately 4.4% of the total population of active orthopedic surgery residents. Of these participants, 41.6% were female, 57.9% were male, and 0.5% were non-binary. The majority of residency applicants self-identified as White (56.8%), followed by Black/African-American (25.4%). The top five factors ranked as very important and essential by Black/African-American survey respondents were the impression after the interview (95.9%), resident camaraderie (93.7%), advice from mentors (91.7%), personal interactions with residents (89.6%), and perceived commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) (89.6%).

Orthopaedic surgery programs should focus on enhancing diversity among faculty and consider collaborative efforts among medical schools, residency programs, professional organizations like the Perry Initiative, RJOS, American Association of Latino Orthopaedic Surgeons are they are essential to effect meaningful change in recruiting and retaining Black orthopaedic surgery residents.