Perceived commitment to diversity, equity among factors in rank lists for Black residents
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Key takeaways:
- Top factor for residents’ rank lists before match was impression after the interview.
- Pre-match, the number of residents from underrepresented groups in a program was a significant factor for applicants.
SAN FRANCISCO — Concern regarding personal interactions and perceptions of program commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion are among factors Black orthopedic surgery residents consider in their rank lists, according to presented data.
“I think what our study showed is that orthopedic surgery programs should focus on enhancing diversity and in the faculty and also consider collaborating with some of the organizations that are creating pipelines. That way, they can start to address some of the concerns and provide opportunity for minority residents to connect with other residents and attendings of similar backgrounds,” Christon Darden, MD, MS, told Healio.
To assess the opinions of recently matched Black orthopedic surgery residents from multiple institutions about the factors that influenced their rank list order, Darden and colleagues emailed a 13-item questionnaire to program coordinators of ACGME-accredited programs in the United States in March 2023. The researchers instructed the program coordinators to distribute the survey to orthopedic surgery residents and medical students who matched during the 2023 cycle. The survey was limited to 200 programs.
Overall, 44 (18.8%) of the 234 orthopedic surgery residents who self-identified as Black completed the survey. Of the survey respondents, 41% were women and 59% were men.
Researchers found that the top five factors that significantly contributed to the Black orthopedic surgery residents’ rank lists before match as ranked as very important or essential were: impression after the interview; advice from mentors; resident camaraderie; personal interactions with residents; and the perceived commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives as demonstrated by the program and program director.
Researchers found that pre-match, the number of residents from underrepresented groups in a program was a significant factor for applicants. However, they found that the number of faculty members from underrepresented groups and a diversity, equity and inclusion committee were not considered highly important pre-match.
“Interestingly enough, pre-match, the minority aspect in faculty wasn’t that important. [During] the post-match, we found that this changed,” Darden said.
Researchers found applicants’ five main concerns ranked as very or extremely concerning after match were: adequate preparation for the AAOS Orthopaedic In-Training Examination; difficulty finding a mentor of the same race/sex; availability of academic resources; possibility of being dismissed from the program; and research opportunities.
“When you’re talking about delivering patient care and meeting people where they are, faculty recruitment is very important, even on the other side of things, not just with the residents,” David A. Forsh, MD, associate professor of orthopaedics at Mount Sinai and co-author of the study, told Healio.
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Darden C, et al. Paper 399. Presented at: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting; Feb. 12-16, 2024; San Francisco.
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