Funding priorities and health outcomes in Danish medical research.

External research funding is an essential component of the infrastructure of modern, academic research. Priorities in funding decisions drive what knowledge is generated, and how scientists' careers are shaped. For health research, it can ultimately have implications for health outcomes. The aim of this paper is to illustrate how funding information can be used to track priorities in health research, linking them to disease burdens and research outputs. Furthermore, funding concentrations are analysed from both researcher and disease perspectives, to estimate the influence of personal Matthew-effects on the distribution of health research funding. Denmark is used as the case, including funding information from all major public and private research foundations in the period 2004-2016. Grant information is linked to research outputs and disability-adjusted life-years (DALY rates), for 34,160 publications linked to 2630 grants, receiving DKK 4.8 billion in funding. Data show poor correlation between funding priorities, research activity and disease burdens, with several diseases receiving disproportionate amounts of funding. A research opportunity index is calculated to identify diseases with the highest potential for future investments from a burden-centred point of view. Funding is highly concentrated, both on people and on specific diseases. High funding concentrations on researchers can be a driving factor behind the observed funding-to-burden imbalances, and may risk knowledge stagnation through monopolisation of the market place of ideas. Results indicate that funders of clinical and translational research, as well as some types of biomedical research, need to supplement traditional considerations of scientific excellence with measures of societal challenges and relevance.

Characterization of clinical trials in Ecuador and their association with disease burden: Are there research gaps?

This study offers a detailed analysis of clinical trials conducted in Ecuador from 2010 to 2022 to assess alignment with the country's disease burden as indicated by the Global Burden of Disease study. Utilizing data from five registries, including ARCSA and Clinicaltrials.gov, we analyzed characteristics and coverage of 75 CTs after removing duplicates and ineligible studies. Findings reveal a 50% research gap across disease groups, with neoplasms being the only category matching disease burden. The scarcity of clinical research highlights the disparity between CTs and prevalent diseases such as cardiovascular and kidney diseases, diabetes, and other non-communicable conditions. Our results underscore the urgent need for increased clinical research investment addressing these critical health challenges in Ecuador.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY RESEARCH: ANALYSIS OF THE AGENDA FUNDED BY THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH / INVESTIGACIÓN DE ACTIVIDAD FÍSICA: ANÁLISIS DE LA AGENDA FINANCIADA POR EL MINISTERIO DE SALUD / PESQUISAS EM ATIVIDADE FÍSICA: ANÁLISE DA AGENDA FINANCIADA PELO MINISTÉRIO DA SAÚDE

Introduction: Physical activity (PA) is one of the strategic agendas in the public health agenda and in Brazil it is established as a right of the population. The Ministry of Health funds research guided by the National Agenda of Health Research Priorities (ANPPS), so the ANPPS can bring PA research closer to the policies of the Unified Health System (SUS). The study aimed to analyze a) the temporal evolution of the number, total value and value per survey; b) the axles; c) the sub-agendas of the ANPPS. Methods: This is a descriptive, quantitative, study of PA research funded by the Ministry of Health between 2002 and 2023, carried out by consulting the public repository "Pesquisa Saúde". The temporal trend analysis of the number, total deflated value and deflated value was performed per survey. The absolute and relative values of the number and total value were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: A total of 234 PA research were funded, and the total deflated amount was approximately R$ 60.0 million, which corresponds to an average investment of R$ 256.5 thousand per research. This amount represents 3.2% and 1.7%, respectively, of the quantity and of the total deflated value for health research. Important fluctuations in the number and funding were revealed, with a decreasing trend for the number, total value and value per survey in the period analyzed. The health consequences axis was the one that received the largest number of research and financial resources. The sub-agenda with the highest number of studies was chronic non-communicable diseases and the one that received the largest amount of resources was epidemiology. Conclusion: PA was present in research funded by the Ministry of Health, but it is necessary to advance, especially in increasing the amount of resources and inducing specific funding for the policy axis, aiming to expand the production of knowledge about PA as a public health policy.

Introducción: La actividad física (AF) es una de las cuestiones estratégicas en la agenda de la salud pública y en Brasil está establecida como un derecho de la población. El Ministerio de Salud financia investigaciones orientadas por la Agenda Nacional de Prioridades de Investigación en Salud (ANPPS), por lo tanto, la ANPPS puede acercar las investigaciones en AF a las políticas del Sistema Único de Salud (SUS). El estudio tuvo como objetivos analizar: a) la evolución temporal del número, del valor total y valor por investigación; b) los ejes; c) las subagendas de la ANPPS. Métodos: Se trata de un estudio descriptivo, cuantitativo, de las investigaciones en AF financiadas por el Ministerio de Salud en el período entre 2002 y 2023, realizado a través de una consulta en el repositorio público "Pesquisa Saúde". Se realizó un análisis de tendencia temporal del número, valor total deflacionado y valor deflacionado por investigación. Los valores absolutos y relativos del número y valor total fueron analizados mediante estadística descriptiva. Resultados:Se financiaron 234 investigaciones en AF y el valor total deflacionado fue de aproximadamente R$ 60,0 millones, lo que corresponde a una inversión promedio de R$ 256,5 mil por investigación. Este cuantitativo representa respectivamente el 3,2% y el 1,7% del cuantitativo y del valor total deflacionado para investigaciones en salud. Se revelaron importantes oscilaciones en el número y en la financiación, con tendencia decreciente para el número, valor total y valor por investigación en el período analizado. El eje de consecuencias para la salud fue el que recibió el mayor número de investigaciones y de recursos financieros. La subagenda con mayor número de investigaciones fue la de enfermedades crónicas no transmisibles y la que recibió el mayor monto de recursos fue la de epidemiología. Conclusión: La AF estuvo presente en las investigaciones financiadas por el Ministerio de Salud, sin embargo, es necesario avanzar, principalmente en el aumento del monto de recursos y en la inducción de la promoción específica para el eje de políticas, con el objetivo de ampliar la producción de conocimiento sobre AF como política pública de salud.

Introdução: A atividade física (AF) é uma das pautas estratégicas na agenda da saúde pública e no Brasil é estabelecida enquanto um direito da população. O Ministério da Saúde financia pesquisas orientadas pela Agenda Nacional de Prioridades de Pesquisa em Saúde (ANPPS), portanto, a ANPPS pode aproximar as pesquisas em AF das políticas do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). O estudo teve como objetivos analisar: a) a evolução temporal do número, do valor total e valor por pesquisa; b) os eixos; c) as subagendas da ANPPS. Métodos: Trata-se de um estudo descritivo, quantitativo, das pesquisas em AF financiadas pelo Ministério da Saúde no período entre 2002 e 2023, realizado por meio de consulta no repositório público "Pesquisa Saúde". Foi realizada a análise de tendência temporal do número, valor total deflacionado e valor deflacionado por pesquisa. Os valores absolutos e relativos do número e valor total foram analisados por meio de estatística descritiva. Resultados: Foram financiadas 234 pesquisas em AF e o valor total deflacionado foi de aproximadamente R$ 60,0 milhões, o que corresponde a um investimento médio de R$ 256,5 mil por pesquisa. Esse quantitativo representa respectivamente 3,2% e 1,7% do quantitativo e do valor total deflacionado para pesquisas em saúde. Foram reveladas importantes oscilações no número e no financiamento, com tendência decrescente para o número, valor total e valor por pesquisa no período analisado. O eixo de consequências para a saúde foi o que recebeu o maior número de pesquisas e de recursos financeiros. A subagenda com maior número de pesquisas foi a de doenças crônicas não transmissíveis e a que recebeu o maior montante de recursos foi a de epidemiologia. Conclusão: A AF esteve presente nas pesquisas financiadas pelo Ministério da Saúde, contudo é necessário avançar, principalmente no aumento do montante de recursos e na indução do fomento específico para o eixo de políticas, visando ampliar a produção do conhecimento sobre AF enquanto política pública de saúde.

Assessing and Achieving Quality in Qualitative Research: Clues for Researchers in Training.

Abstract: This article deals with the particularities of the quality of qualitative research, under the double lens of valuing it and ensuring it. While achieving the quality of qualitative research concerns only those who have opted for this methodology, assessing it is everyone's business because researchers in training will encounter, in the literature reviews, qualitative studies on which they must reflect and estimate their quality. Appreciating the quality of a research work is a complex activity as it is situated within a context and conducted by individuals who use any of the means available to do so. The means they use are criteria as evaluation guides and criteria checklists. For researchers in training, I suggest some guiding criteria to evaluate qualitative publications and ensure quality during the research process, key issues that they must address.

A memory-theoretic account of citation propagation.

Despite the common assumption that citations are indicative of an article's scientific merit, increasing evidence indicates that citation counts are largely driven by variables unrelated to quality. In this article, we treat people's decisions of what to cite as an instance of memory retrieval and show that observed citation patterns are well accounted for by a model of memory. The proposed exposure model anticipates that small alterations in factors that affect people's ability to retrieve to-be-cited articles from memory early in their life cycle are magnified over time and can lead to the emergence of highly cited papers. This effect occurs even when there is no variation in the starting point exposure probabilities (i.e. when assuming a level playing field where all articles are treated equally and of equal 'quality'), and is exacerbated by natural variation in retrievability of articles due to encoding. We discuss the implications of the model within the context of research evaluation and hiring, tenure and promotion decisions.

Assessing and Achieving Quality in Qualitative Research: Clues for Researchers in Training* / Valorar y lograr la calidad de la investigación cualitativa: claves para investigadores en formación / Avaliar e alcançar a qualidade da pesquisa qualitativa: chaves para pesquisadores em formação

This article deals with the particularities of the quality of qualitative research, under the double lens of valuing it and ensuring it. While achieving the quality of qualitative research concerns only those who have opted for this methodology, assessing it is everyone's business because researchers in training will encounter, in the literature reviews, qualitative studies on which they must reflect and estimate their quality. Appreciating the quality of a research work is a complex activity as it is situated within a context and conducted by individuals who use any of the means available to do so. The means they use are criteria as evaluation guides and criteria checklists. For researchers in training, I suggest some guiding criteria to evaluate qualitative publications and ensure quality during the research process, key issues that they must address.

Este artículo trata sobre las particularidades de la calidad de la investigación cualitativa, bajo la doble lente de valorarla y asegurarla. Mientras que alcanzar la calidad de una investigación cualitativa atañe solo a los que han optado por esta metodología, valorarla es asunto de todos, ya que los investigadores en formación se encontrarán en las revisiones bibliográficas con estudios cualitativos sobre los cuales deberán reflexionar y estimar su calidad. Apreciar la calidad de un trabajo de investigación es una actividad compleja ya que está situada en un contexto y llevada a cabo por personas que usan alguno de los medios disponibles para hacerlo. Los medios que usan son los criterios como guías de evaluación y los listados de verificación de criterios. Para los investigadores en formación sugiero unos criterios guía para la valoración de publicaciones cualitativas y para asegurar la calidad durante el proceso de investigación, unas cuestiones claves a las que deben atender.

Este artigo trata das particularidades da qualidade da pesquisa qualitativa, sob a dupla lente de valorizá-la e garanti-la. Embora alcançar a qualidade da pesquisa qualitativa seja do interesse de quem optou por esta metodologia, Avaliar é tarefa de todos, pois os pesquisadores em formação se encontrarão em revisões bibliográficas com estudos qualitativos, sobre os quais deverão refletir e estimar sua qualidade. Avaliar a qualidade de um trabalho de investigação é uma atividade complexa, pois está situada num context e é realizada por pessoas que utilizam qualquer um dos meios disponíveis para o fazer. Os meios que utilizam são critérios como guias de avaliação e listas de verificação de critérios. Aos pesquisadores em formação, sugiro alguns critérios norteadores para avaliar publicações qualitativas e para garantir a qualidade durante o processo de pesquisa, questões chaves que devem ser abordadas.

The metrics maze in science: navigating academic evaluation without journalistic pressures.

In recent years a troubling trend has emerged in the medical research field, notably in reproductive medicine, manifesting an increased emphasis on quantity over quality in articles published. The pressure to collect copious publication records risks compromising meticulous expertise and impactful contributions. This tendency is exemplified by the rise of 'hyper-prolific researchers' publishing at an extraordinary rate (i.e. every 5 days), prompting a deeper analysis of the reasons underlying this behaviour. Prioritizing rapid publication over Galileo Galilei's systematic scientific principles may lead to a superficial approach driven by quantitative targets. Thus, the overreliance on metrics to facilitate academic careers has shifted the focus to numerical quantification rather than the real scientific contribution, raising concerns about the effectiveness of the evaluation systems. The Hamletian question is: are we scientist or journalist? Addressing these issues could necessitate a crucial re-evaluation of the assessment criteria, emphasizing a balance between quantity and quality to foster an academic environment that values meaningful contributions and innovation.

Gender biases in the evaluation of knowledge transfer: A meta-evaluative analysis of the Spanish "Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Sexennium".

This paper analyses from a gender perspective a pilot call for evaluating academics and researcher transfer and innovation activities, launched by the Spanish Government in 2018, known as the "Knowledge Transfer & Innovation Sexennium" (KT&IS). Not only women's participation was much lower than that of men (1 woman applicant for every 3 men applicants), but also, they showed lower success rates than men in all scientific fields, with an average gap of more than 13 points. The methodology combined an exploratory quantitative analysis of the almost 17,000 applications, with a meta-evaluative qualitative analysis through interviews to key actors of the evaluation program and focus groups with evaluators. Hidden biases operating throughout and in each of the different phases of the KT&IS evaluation process were identified. This article aims at contributing to how economic and social impact of research can be fairly and fully evaluated, as well as at facilitating the design of future evaluation calls that promote the effective advancement of gender equality in all science-related activities and transfer to society.

Resultados del Programa Territorial "Desarrollo de productos y servicios de salud"

Un programa de ciencia, tecnología e innovación es un conjunto de actividades organizadas en proyectos que se relacionan entre sí, cuyo objetivo es resolver un problema identificado según las prioridades y dirigido a lograr resultados de impactos específicos. En la provincia Santiago de Cuba está en acción, desde el año 2020, el Programa Territorial "Desarrollo de productos y servicios de salud", que ha ejecutado 12 proyectos de investigación. En el presente artículo se identifican sus resultados científico-técnicos y, además, se plantea que estos responden a prioridades sectoriales y territoriales y se encuentran en correspondencia con las políticas del sector sanitario y de la educación superior en Cuba. Su introducción contribuye a resolver las problemáticas de salud en el territorio mediante la aplicación de la ciencia y la innovación tecnológica para el diagnóstico, el tratamiento y la rehabilitación de pobladores con enfermedades.

A science, technology and innovation program is a group of activities organized in projects that are related to each other, which objective is to solve a problem identified according to the priorities and directed to achieve results of specific impacts. In Santiago de Cuba province the Territorial Program "Development of products and health services" is in action since 2020, which has implemented 12 investigation projects. In this work the scientific-technical results are identified; also, it is considered that they respond to sectoral and territorial priorities and are in correspondence with the policy of the health sector and higher education in Cuba. Their introduction contributes to solve the health problems in the territory by means of the implementation of science and technological innovation for the diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of persons with diseases.

Bibliometric Indices As Indicators of Research Output: Analyzing Anesthesiologists as a Paradigm for Surgical Disciplines.

Anesthesiology is one of the increasingly competitive surgical specialties with a growing emphasis on scholarly activity. A metric of productivity and citation influence, the Hirsch index (h-index), can help identify mentors capable of guiding postgraduate trainees toward successful academic achievements. This study sought to determine associations between h-indices or m-quotients and manuscript publication in anesthesiology. Using the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) website, accepted abstracts from the ASA Annual Meetings from 2019 to 2021 were screened (n=2146). The first author (FAHi) and senior author (SAHi) h-indices, as well as the first author (FAMq) and senior author (SAMq) m-quotients, were collected for each abstract using the Scopus database. Whether an accepted abstract was subsequently published as a manuscript in a peer-reviewed journal was also noted, along with the number of days between ASA presentation and publication date. Linear and logistic regression models were used for statistical analyses. In total, 348 (34.4%) of the 1012 eligible abstracts were published as manuscripts. Mean FAHi, SAHi, FAMq, and SAMq, were significantly higher for accepted ASA abstracts that were later published in peer-reviewed journals compared to accepted abstracts that were not published (p<0.001). FAHi, SAHi, FAMq, and SAMq had significant positive associations with odds of publication (p=0.002; p<0.001; p=0.006; p<0.001, respectively). There was no statistical significance between FAHi, SAHi, FAMq, or SAMq and the number of days between ASA presentation and publication. Our study uniquely demonstrates the positive, direct association between h-indices and m-quotients with the probability of publication in anesthesiology. We propose that bibliometric indices are adapted to provide a refined perspective of a physician-scientist's capabilities. Postgraduate trainees can use these indices to discern research mentors primed to foster academic excellence.

A figure of merit that includes 5 distinct performance indicators to improve research evaluation of academic scholars'.

The h index has become a widely known indicator to assess the research impact of academic scholars. However, its application has been associated with some criticism regarding its ability to fully capture the quality and significance of an author's research contributions. In this paper, we present a novel approach to improve the evaluation of authors' publications by means of a Figure-of-Merit (FOM) that includes 5 distinct indicators, of which, an enhanced version of the h index. Named the Enhanced Research Quality Index (ERQI), it addresses the current limitations of existing solutions and offers a more comprehensive evaluation of research quality. The ERQI builds upon the concept that one metric is never sufficient to capture the performance of an academic scholar, while multiple ones are complex to handle and interpret. The proposed ERQI considers the total number of citations, papers and co-authors and can further differentiate researchers with equal h index. By incorporating measurable, and quantitative metrics, ERQI moves away from subjective and indirect factors such as journal reputation, citation context, citation patterns and self-citation righteousness, to offer a more nuanced and accurate representation of research quality. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed metric, we conducted a comparative study using a real dataset of 31 researchers in one of the top 3 engineering faculties in Lebanon, and a randomly generated dataset of 1000 author profiles with >1 million citations. Our findings indicate that ERQI provides a more balanced assessment of research quality by reducing the shortcomings of one indicator. Furthermore, it exhibits a multidimensional effect that captures more efficiently the intrinsic value of scholarly contributions. By adopting ERQI, institutions can make informed decisions that recognize both the quantity and quality of an author's research output and can obtain insightful evaluation enabling fairer recognition of academic scholars' impact and innovation.

"It is becoming increasingly difficult to find reviewers"-myths and facts about peer review.

A frequent complaint of editors of scientific journals is that it has become increasingly difficult to find reviewers for evaluating submitted manuscripts. Such claims are, most commonly, based on anecdotal evidence. To gain more insight grounded on empirical evidence, editorial data of manuscripts submitted for publication to the Journal of Comparative Physiology A between 2014 and 2021 were analyzed. No evidence was found that more invitations were necessary over time to get manuscripts reviewed; that the reviewer's response time after invitation increased; that the number of reviewers who completed their reports, relative to the number of reviewers who had agreed to review a manuscript, decreased; and that the recommendation behavior of reviewers changed. The only significant trend observed was among reviewers who completed their reports later than agreed. The average number of days that these reviewers submitted their evaluations roughly doubled over the period analyzed. By contrast, neither the proportion of late vs. early reviews, nor the time for completing the reviews among the punctual reviewers, changed. Comparison with editorial data from other journals suggests that journals that serve a smaller community of readers and authors, and whose editors themselves contact potential reviewers, perform better in terms of reviewer recruitment and performance than journals that receive large numbers of submissions and use editorial assistants for sending invitations to potential reviewers.

Break the domestic public hospital clinical research evaluation system under the background of"five only" / 现代医院

Objective The purpose of this article is to summarize and review the current status of the construction of clinical research evaluation systems in domestic public hospitals,identify existing problems in the evaluation system,and propose development strategies and suggestions.Methods Retrieved relevant articles,dissertations and policies from the past five years(2018-2022),screened the titles,viewed the full texts of 52 selected papers and their references,and summarized them.Results The"five-only"indicators have long been an important indicator for evaluating clinical research in public hospitals,but in today's scientific research environment and policy environment,the"five-only"evaluation system has revealed its utilitarian draw-backs and gradually evolved into a hindrance to scientific research.It is urgent to break through the"five-only"orientation and establish a clinical research evaluation system oriented towards"transforming and applying transformation of scientific research achievements".Conclusion The evaluation system for clinical research should break the previous"five-only"evaluation model based on quantity-oriented scientific research evaluation.We can draw on the framework of the research output,influence,and environment indicators in the UK's REF Excellence Framework model,combine the American APT system and the Chinese STEM indicator dimensions,explore multi-outcome evaluation,integrate developmental indicators,and continuously improve the indica-tor system and application methods in practice to promote the development of clinical research in public hospitals.

Investigation of the current situation and discussion on countermeasures of scientific research integrity among researchers in a tertiary A hospital / 中国医学伦理学

ObjectiveBy investigating the awareness situation of scientific research integrity among scientific researchers， their behavior and attitudes towards scientific research integrity， and the reasons for the occurrence of scientific research integrity， to identify the key influencing factors and risk points， and propose targeted management ideas for scientific research integrity construction. MethodsA web-based questionnaire was used to survey the awareness of scientific research integrity policies， behavior and attitude， and reasons for dishonest behavior in scientific research among scientific researchers at a tertiary A hospital. ResultsA total of 1，385 questionnaires were recovered， with 1，253 valid questionnaires. There were 246 males and 1，007 females， aged between 20 and 60 years old， with an average age of （37.98±8.97） years old. The average awareness rate of policies related to scientific research integrity was 39.44%. Scientific researchers believe that the top three risk points for dishonest behavior in scientific research were paper submission， entrusting third-party services， and the use of research funds. According to the different scientific research work involved by different survey subjects， the respondent population was set up with the attributes of the personnel in the basic information of the survey content on attitudes toward violating scientific research behavior norms， and was divided into four groups. The awareness situation of scientific research integrity policies was negatively correlated with the attitudes towards dishonest behavior in scientific research in the first and third groups. Publication of SCI papers and the awareness situation of scientific research integrity policies were negatively correlated with attitudes towards dishonest behavior in scientific research in the second group. Age and publication of SCI papers were related to attitudes towards dishonest behavior in scientific research in the fourth group， which were negatively correlated with the publication of SCI papers and positively correlated with age. ConclusionThe learning and training， and the rate of policy awareness of scientific research integrity were not high， and the awareness of scientific research integrity policies should be further improved. There are still risks and problems in the key links of scientific research activities， and it is necessary to strengthen the integrity management of the whole process of scientific research activities， establish the correct scientific values of scientific researchers， improve the scientific research evaluation system， and create a good scientific research environment.

Interés en investigación y producción científica de estudiantes de medicina

Introducción: El interés en investigación y la producción científica en educación terciaria se encuentran en constante evolución, pero aún se necesitan mejoras y resolución de limitaciones para que la producción científica no se concentre en el ámbito de postgrado, sino que inicie su ascenso desde el pregrado. Objetivo: Evaluar el nivel de interés en investigación y de producción científica de estudiantes de medicina. Material y métodos: Estudio transversal descriptivo. La muestra estuvo constituida por 177 estudiantes de medicina y los datos se recolectaron mediante formularios electrónicos, que contaban con 25 preguntas enfocadas en formación básica e interés en investigación y producción científica. Los datos fueron procesados en el software STATA 14.0. Se utilizaron pruebas Kolmogorov-Smirnov, χ 2 y Wilcoxon, considerando significativos valores de p<0,05. Resultados: Se registraron respuestas de 177 estudiantes de los 6 años de la carrera de medicina, sexo femenino 66,7%, edad promedio 22,2 (1,96) años, procedencia 90% del Departamento de Caaguazú. El 83,1% lee artículos científicos, 80,8% tiene interés en publicar su tesis, 92% tiene interés en dedicarse a la investigación cuando sea profesional, 33,9% ha presentado posters científicos, 7,3% ha hecho presentaciones orales en un congreso y 17,5% ha publicado artículos científicos. Conclusiones: Se evidenció un alto interés en investigación, en discrepancia con las bajas cifras de producción científica. Por ende, se recomienda tomar medidas para fortalecer las aptitudes de los estudiantes en temas de investigación y aumentar la producción científica del cuerpo estudiantil.

Introduction: Interest in research and scientific production in tertiary education are constantly evolving, but improvements and resolution of limitations are still needed so that scientific production is not concentrated in the postgraduate field but begins its ascent from the undergraduate level. Objective: Evaluate the level of interest in research and scientific production of medical students. Material and methods: Descriptive cross-sectional study. The sample consisted of 177 medical students and the data were collected through an electronic form, which had 25 questions focused on basic training and interest in research and scientific production. The data were processed in the STATA 14.0 software. Kolmogorov-Smirnov, χ2 and Wilcoxon tests were used, considering significant values of p<0.05. Results: Responses were recorded from 177 students of the 6 years of the medical career, 66.7% female, average age 22.2 (1.96) years, 90% from the department of Caaguazú. 83.1% read scientific articles, 80.8% are interested in publishing their thesis, 92% are interested in dedicating themselves to research when they are professionals, 33.9% have presented scientific posters, 7.3% have made oral presentations at a congress and 17.5% have published scientific articles. Conclusions: There was evidence of a high interest in research, in discrepancy with the low figures of scientific production. Therefore, it is recommended to take measures to strengthen students' skills in research topics and increase the scientific output of the student body.

Corrigendum: Corrigendum: Evaluative altmetrics: is there evidence for its application to research evaluation?

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/frma.2023.1295959.].

Statistical model and method for analyzing AI conference rankings: China vs USA.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a rapidly developing field of research that attracts significant funding from both the state and industry players. Such interest is driven by a wide range of AI technology applications in many fields. Since many AI research topics relate to computer science, where a significant share of research results are published in conference proceedings, the same applies to AI. The world leaders in artificial intelligence research are China and the United States. The authors conducted a comparative analysis of the bibliometric indicators of AI conference papers from these two countries based on Scopus data. The analysis aimed to identify conferences that receive above-average citation rates and suggest publication strategies for authors from these countries to participate in conferences that are likely to provide better dissemination of their research results. The results showed that, although Chinese researchers publish more AI papers than those from the United States, US conference papers are cited more frequently. The authors also conducted a correlation analysis of the MNCS index, which revealed no high correlation between MNCS USA vs. MNCS China, MNCS China/MNCS USA vs. MSAR, and MNCS China/MNCS USA vs. CORE ranking indicators.

Telehealth Diabetes Prevention Program for Adults With Prediabetes in an Academic Medical Center Setting: Protocol for a Hybrid Type III Trial.

BACKGROUND: Diabetes is a costly epidemic in the United States associated with both health and economic consequences. These consequences can be mitigated by participation in structured lifestyle change programs such as the National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mississippi consistently has among the highest rates of diabetes and prediabetes nationally. Implementing the National DPP through large health care systems can increase reach and accessibility for populations at the highest risk for diabetes. Translational research on the National DPP in Mississippi has not been studied. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate the implementation and impact of the National DPP delivered using telehealth modalities at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi. METHODS: An effectiveness-implementation hybrid type III research design is proposed. The study design is guided by the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance framework and the Practical, Robust Implementation and Sustainability Model. Participants are being recruited via provider referral, and the DPP is being delivered by trained lifestyle coaches. Study participants include adult (≥18 years) patients eligible for the DPP with at least 1 encounter at 1 of 3 ambulatory clinic specialties (lifestyle medicine, family medicine, and internal medicine) between January 2019 and December 2023. The National DPP eligibility criteria include a BMI ≥25 kg/m2 and hemoglobin A1c between 5.7% and 6.4%. The University of Mississippi Medical Center criteria include Medicare or Medicaid beneficiaries. The University of Mississippi Medical Center's a priori implementation plan was developed using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research and includes 23 discrete strategies. The primary aim will use an embedded mixed method process analysis to identify and mitigate challenges to implementation. The secondary aim will use a nonrandomized quasi-experimental design to assess the comparative effectiveness of the DPP on health care expenditures. A propensity score matching method will be implemented to compare case subjects to control subjects. The primary outcomes include patient referrals, participant enrollment, retention, engagement, the incidence of diabetes, and health care resource use and costs. RESULTS: At baseline, of the 26,151 patients across 3 ambulatory clinic specialties, 1010 (3.9%) had prediabetes and were eligible for the National DPP. Of the 1010 patients, more than half (n=562, 55.6%) were aged 65 years or older, 79.5% (n=803) were Medicare beneficiaries, 65.9% (n=666) were female, and 70.8% (n=715) were obese. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first translational study of the National DPP in Mississippi. The findings will inform implementation strategies impacting the uptake and sustainability of the National DPP delivered in an academic medical setting using distance learning and telehealth modalities. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04822480; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT03622580. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/50183.

Corrigendum: Evaluative altmetrics: is there evidence for its application to research evaluation?

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/frma.2023.1188131.].