Academic Productivity of Faculty Associated With Craniofacial Surgery Fellowship Programs

Background: The H-index is increasingly being used as a measure of academic productivity and has been applied to various surgical disciplines. Here the authors calculate the H-index of craniofacial surgery fellowship faculty in North America in order to determine its utility for academic productivity among craniofacial surgeons. Methods: A list of fellowship programs was obtained from the website of the American Society of Craniofacial Surgery. Faculty demographics and institution characteristics were obtained from official program websites and the H-index was calculated using Scopus (Elsevier, USA). Data were assessed using bivariate analysis tools (Kruskal – Wallis and Mann – Whitney tests) to determine the relationship between independent variables and career publications, H-index and 5-year H-index (H5-index) of faculty. Dunn test for multiple comparisons was also calculated. Results: A total of 102 faculty members from 29 craniofacial surgery fellowship programs were identified and included. Faculty demographics reflected a median age of 48 (interquartile range [IQR] 13), a predominantly male sample (88/102, 89.7%), and the rank of assistant professor being the most common among faculty members (41/102, 40.2%). Median of career publications per faculty was 37 (IQR 52.5) and medians of H-index and H5-index were 10.0 (IQR 13.75) and 3.5 (IQR 3.25), respectively. Greater age, male gender, Fellow of the American College of Surgeons membership, higher academic rank, and program affiliation with ranked research medical schools were significantly associated with higher H-indices. Conclusions: Variables associated with seniority were positively associated with the H-index. These results suggest that the H-index may be used as an adjunct in determining academic productivity for promotions among craniofacial surgeons.