Systematic review of vascular surgery recruitment strategies for medical students and general surgery residents.

OBJECTIVES: Recruitment into the vascular surgery specialty is an imperative as the specialty faces significant demographic changes. Due to the changing dynamics in vascular surgery training pathways, we sought to review current literature on recruitment strategies and their effectiveness with medical students and general surgery residents. METHODS: A systematic search, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, was performed by searching MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), and Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) databases for studies on vascular surgery recruitment methods for medical students and general surgery residents from inception of databases to December 31, 2021. Reports in English discussing recruitment strategies were included. Reports lacking recruitment method data and those with insufficient data were excluded. RESULTS: Ten reports met inclusion criteria and studied a total of 688 participants. Seven reports (70%) employed simulation, didactic, or online courses. The remaining 30% of studies included data on mentorship, research, or other interventions. Most of the studies (50%) reported data for medical students (MS1-MS4). Interventions specific to residents or both students and residents comprised the other 50% of studies. Simulation and didactic courses increased interest in vascular surgery by a median of 50% (interquartile range, 38%-64%) for both medical students and residents. Importantly, without reinforcement, interest was seen to decrease over time. CONCLUSIONS: Recruitment interventions are useful in increasing student interest in vascular surgery. Early exposure to simulated vascular surgery procedures and mentorship are cited as common reasons for entering the field. Further studies on recruitment strategies focused on long-term outcomes are required.

Recruiting trainees to surgery in the United States and Canadian system - What strategies are effective?

BACKGROUND: There has been increasing concerns regarding the declining number of medical students entering surgical residencies. The aim of this study is to analyze strategies and outcomes to enhance recruitment to the surgical specialties. METHODS: A systematic literature PRISMA-based search was performed. Study quality and bias were assessed. Meta-analysis was performed using DerSimonian Laird method. RESULTS: Of 3288 unique titles identified, 73 studies met inclusion criteria. Median study unique sample size was 84 participants (range 15-910). Subjective interest was reported in 59 studies, while objective match rate was reported by only 21 studies. The cumulative odds of students interested in the studied specialty was 1.98 (95% CI 1.47-2.67, I2 = 0%) and in any surgical specialty was 1.40 (95% 1.01-1.95, I2 = 37%) after an intervention compared to baseline. CONCLUSION: While studies show increased odds of "interested in" a surgical specialty, the results may be subject to high selective and confounding biases.