Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Mentorship, Productivity, and Promotion Among Academic Hospitalists

  • Original Research
  • Published:
Journal of General Internal Medicine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

BACKGROUND

United States academic hospitals have rapidly adopted the hospitalist model of care. Academic hospitalists have taken on much of the clinical and teaching responsibilities at many institutions, yet little is known about their academic productivity and promotion.

OBJECTIVE

We sought to discover the attitudes and attributes of academic hospitalists regarding mentorship, productivity, and promotion.

DESIGN

We performed a web-based email survey of academic hospitalists consisting of 61 questions.

PARTICIPANTS

Four hundred and twenty academic hospitalists.

MAIN MEASURES

Demographic details, scholarly production, presence of mentorship and attitudes towards mentor, academic rank

KEY RESULTS

Two hundred and sixty-six (63%) of hospitalists responded. The majority were under 41 (80%) and had been working as hospitalists for <5 years (62%). Only 42% of academic hospitalists had a mentor. Forty-four percent of hospitalists had not presented a poster or abstract at national meeting; 51% had not been first author on a peer-reviewed publication. Factors positively associated with publication of a peer-reviewed first author paper included: 1) male gender, AOR = 2.38 (95% CI 1.30, 4.33), 2) >20% “protected” time, AOR = 1.92 (95% CI 1.00, 3.69), and 3) a better-than-average understanding of the criteria for promotion, AOR = 3.66 (95% CI 1.76, 7.62). A lack of mentorship was negatively associated with producing any peer-reviewed first author publications AOR = 0.43 (95% CI 0.23, 0.81); any non-peer reviewed publications AOR = 0.45 (95% CI 0.24, 0.83), and leading a teaching session at a national meeting AOR = 0.41 (95% CI 0.19, 0.88). Most hospitalists promoted to the level of associate professor had been first author on four to six peer-reviewed publications.

CONCLUSIONS

Most academic hospitalists had not presented a poster at a national meeting, authored an academic publication, or presented grand rounds at their institution. Many academic hospitalists lacked mentorship and this was associated with a failure to produce scholarly activity. Mentorship may improve academic productivity among hospitalists.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

REFERENCES

  1. Wachter RM, Goldman L. The emerging role of "hospitalists" in the American health care system. N Engl J Med. 1996;335(7):514–7.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Wachter RM. Growth in care provided by hospitalists. N Engl J Med. 2009;360(26):2789–90.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Beasley BW, Simon SD, Wright SM. A time to be promoted. The Prospective Study of Promotion in Academia (Prospective Study of Promotion in Academia). J Gen Intern Med. 2006;21(2):123–9.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Sackett DL. On the determinants of academic success as a clinician–scientist. Clin Invest Med. 2001;24(2):94–100.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Bettmann M. Choosing a research project and a research mentor. Circulation. 2009;119(13):1832–5.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Hazzard WR. Mentoring across the professional lifespan in academic geriatrics. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1999;47(12):1466–70.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Tobin MJ. Mentoring: seven roles and some specifics. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2004;170(2):114–7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Palepu A, Friedman RH, Barnett RC, Carr PL, Ash AS, Szalacha L, et al. Junior faculty members' mentoring relationships and their professional development in U.S. medical schools. Acad Med. 1998;73(3):318–23.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Levinson W, Kaufman K, Clark B, Tolle SW. Mentors and role models for women in academic medicine. West J Med. 1991;154(4):423–6.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Wingard DL, Garman KA, Reznik V. Facilitating faculty success: outcomes and cost benefit of the UCSD National Center of Leadership in Academic Medicine. Acad Med. 2004;79(10 Suppl):S9–11.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Steiner JF, Curtis P, Lanphear BP, Vu KO, Main DS. Assessing the role of influential mentors in the research development of primary care fellows. Acad Med. 2004;79(9):865–72.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Schrubbe KF. Mentorship: a critical component for professional growth and academic success. J Dent Educ. 2004;68(3):324–8.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Wasserstein AG, Quistberg DA, Shea JA. Mentoring at the University of Pennsylvania: results of a faculty survey. J Gen Intern Med. 2007;22(2):210–4.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Feldman MD, Arean PA, Marshall SJ, Lovett M, O'Sullivan P. Does mentoring matter: results from a survey of faculty mentees at a large health sciences university. Med Educ Online. 2010; 15.

  15. Lowenstein SR, Fernandez G, Crane LA. Medical school faculty discontent: prevalence and predictors of intent to leave academic careers. BMC Med Educ. 2007;7:37.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Farrell SE, Digioia NM, Broderick KB, Coates WC. Mentoring for clinician–educators. Acad Emerg Med. 2004;11(12):1346–50.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Genuardi FJ, Zenni EA. Adolescent medicine faculty development needs. J Adolesc Health. 2001;29(1):46–9.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Chew LD, Watanabe JM, Buchwald D, Lessler DS. Junior faculty's perspectives on mentoring. Acad Med. 2003;78(6):652.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Levinson W, Branch WT Jr, Kroenke K. Clinician–educators in academic medical centers: a two-part challenge. Ann Intern Med. 1998;129(1):59–64.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Beasley BW, Wright SM. Looking forward to promotion: characteristics of participants in the Prospective Study of Promotion in Academia. J Gen Intern Med. 2003;18(9):705–10.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Wright SM, Kern DE, Kolodner K, Howard DM, Brancati FL. Attributes of excellent attending-physician role models. N Engl J Med. 1998;339(27):1986–93.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Luckhaupt SE, Chin MH, Mangione CM, Phillips RS, Bell D, Leonard AC, et al. Mentorship in academic general internal medicine. Results of a survey of mentors. J Gen Intern Med. 2005;20(11):1014–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Atasoylu AA, Wright SM, Beasley BW, Cofrancesco J Jr, Macpherson DS, Partridge T, et al. Promotion criteria for clinician–educators. J Gen Intern Med. 2003;18(9):711–6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Beasley BW, Wright SM, Cofrancesco J Jr, Babbott SF, Thomas PA, Bass EB. Promotion criteria for clinician–educators in the United States and Canada. A survey of promotion committee chairpersons. JAMA. 1997;278(9):723–8.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Broaddus VC, Feigal DW Jr. Starting an academic career. A survey of junior academic pulmonary physicians. Chest. 1994;105(6):1858–63.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We wish to thank Judy Maselli for her valuable help in performing statistical analyses. Dr. Auerbach was supported by a Mid–Career Research Development award from the National Heart, Blood, Lung Institute during the period of this study (K24HL098

Funding

Dr. Auerbach was supported by a Mid-Career Research Development award from the National Heart, Blood, Lung Institute during the period of this study (K24HL09837).

Conflict of Interest

None disclosed.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Denver Health Medical Center, Denver, CO, USA

    Mark B. Reid MD

  2. University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, USA

    Mark B. Reid MD, Gregory J. Misky MD & Jeffrey J. Glasheen MD

  3. Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA

    Rebecca A. Harrison MD

  4. University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Brad Sharpe MD & Andrew Auerbach MD, MPH

Authors
  1. Mark B. Reid MD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Gregory J. Misky MD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Rebecca A. Harrison MD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Brad Sharpe MD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Andrew Auerbach MD, MPH
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Jeffrey J. Glasheen MD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mark B. Reid MD.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Reid, M.B., Misky, G.J., Harrison, R.A. et al. Mentorship, Productivity, and Promotion Among Academic Hospitalists. J GEN INTERN MED 27, 23–27 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-011-1892-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-011-1892-5

KEY WORDS

Search

Navigation