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ECONOMICS, EDUCATION, AND POLICY

Leadership of United States Academic Anesthesiology Programs 2006: Chairperson Characteristics and Accomplishments

Berend Mets, MB, ChB, PhD, FRCA, FFA(SA)^*, Jennifer A. Galford, BS^*, and Heather R. Purichia, PhD

From the *Department of Anesthesiology, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine and the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center; and Department of Psychiatry, Education, Health Services, Outcomes Research Division, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Pennsylvania.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Berend Mets, MB, ChB, FRCA, FFASA, PhD, Eric A. Walker Professor and Chair, Department of Anesthesiology, Pennsylvania State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, H187, BMR C2840, 500 University Dr., Hershey, PA 17033-0850. Address e-mail to bmets{at}psu.edu.

Abstract

BACKGROUND/METHODS: We conducted an Internet-based survey of all current academic anesthesiology chairpersons to benchmark their characteristics and accomplishments, as well as to gain insights that might be useful to aspirant department chairs.

RESULTS: The response rate was 55%; chairs were predominantly male (92%), with a mean age of 55 yr and an average time in post of 6.5 yr. They were American medical graduates (82%), had undergone a research (31%) or a clinical fellowship (57%), were full professors (86%) and practiced most commonly as generalists and in intensive care. Chairs had a significant record of scholarship, including a median of 30 peer-reviewed papers, and an average of 11.0 industry and 2.7 federal grants. Thirty-two percent served as editors of peer-reviewed journals and 42% have served as president/chairman of national committees. Fully 30% of current chairs had previous experience as a chair. Sixty-eight percent of current chairs decided early in their career (at the resident/fellow or assistant professor level) that they wished to be a chair. In advising aspirant chairs, the most helpful experience to being a chair was that of having served as a vice chair, and the highest rated advice was to become a division director. Chairs were predominantly satisfied with their position (median 3 of 10) and 44% would return to clinical anesthesiology after chairmanship.

CONCLUSIONS: The survey suggests that anesthesiology chairs value peer-reviewed research, scholarship, and academic achievement, but do not believe that significant research experience is of great benefit to functioning as a chair.

Anesthesia & Analgesia® is published for the International Anesthesia Research Society® by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins with the assistance of Stanford University Libraries' HighWire Press®. Copyright 2006 by the International Anesthesia Research Society. Online ISSN: 1526-7598   Print ISSN: 0003-2999