目标:神经外科研究和教育基金会(NREF)为培训中和早期职业神经外科科学家提供了各种资助机会。作者分析了NREF资助对神经外科医生在获得研究资助和学术成就方面的职业生涯成功的影响。
方法:查询了NREF数据库,以确定2000年至2015年的NREF获奖者。对获奖者进行了调查,以获取有关其人口特征的信息,学术生涯,和研究经费。仅包括每年资助金额为$50,000或更高的后续研究支持。主要结果是NREF影响比,定义为NREF奖励研究经费与后续资助经费之间的比率。次要结果是作为主要研究者(PI)的后续资助时间,临床实践设置,并取得了最终的学术地位。
结果:从2000年到2015年,158名神经外科医生获得了164个NREF奖励,总计830万美元(M),向46名年轻临床医生调查员(YCI)授予170万美元,150万美元给18名范瓦格宁研究员(VWF),并向100名居民研究奖学金(RFG)获奖者提供510万美元。在所有获奖者中,73%的人目前有学术任命,平均发表数和H指数分别为71±82和20±15。我们调查的总回复率是70%,这些受访者成为我们分析的队列。总的来说,受访者累计获得了7.76亿美元的后NREF奖励资助,最常见的资金来源包括美国国立卫生研究院(3.27亿美元)和基础奖(3.06亿美元)。获奖者的NREF影响比率为YCI为1:381美元,VWF为1:113美元,1美元:41美元为居民RFG。功能神经外科NREF项目的获奖者,小儿神经外科,和神经肿瘤学的NREF影响比最高,分别为$1:$194,$1:$185和$1:$162.在受访者中,9%成为部门主席,26%成为正式教授,82%的人获得了至少一笔后续研究资助,66%的人在获得NREF奖项后,在随后的研究资助中担任PI。
结论:获得NREF资助的培训和早期职业神经外科医生在获得后续资助方面取得了显著成功,研究生产力,和学术成就。NREF赠款在各个职业阶段和子专业提供了巨大的投资回报。它们似乎也对神经外科领域的研究和创新轨迹产生了更广泛的影响。
OBJECTIVE: The Neurosurgery Research and Education Foundation (NREF) provides diverse funding opportunities for in-training and early-career neurosurgeon-scientists. The authors analyzed the impact of NREF funding on the subsequent career success of neurosurgeons in obtaining research funding and academic achievements.
METHODS: The NREF database was queried to identify NREF winners from 2000 to 2015. The award recipients were surveyed to obtain information about their demographic characteristics, academic career, and research funding. Only subsequent research support with an annual funding amount of $50,000 or greater was included. The primary outcome was the NREF impact ratio, defined as the ratio between NREF award research dollars and subsequent grant funding dollars. The secondary outcomes were time to subsequent grant funding as principal investigator (PI), clinical practice settings, and final academic position achieved.
RESULTS: From 2000 to 2015, 158 neurosurgeons received 164 NREF awards totaling $8.3 million (M), with $1.7 M awarded to 46 Young Clinician Investigators (YCIs), $1.5 M to 18 Van Wagenen Fellows (VWFs), and $5.1 M to 100 resident Research Fellowship Grant (RFG) awardees. Of all awardees, 73% have current academic appointments, and the mean ± SD number of publications and H-index were 71 ± 82 and 20 ± 15, respectively. The overall response rate to our survey was 70%, and these respondents became the cohort for our analysis. In total, respondents cumulatively obtained $776 M in post-NREF award grant funding, with the most common sources of funding including the National Institutes of Health ($327 M) and foundational awards ($306 M). The NREF impact ratios for awardees were $1:$381 for YCI, $1:$113 for VWF, and $1:$41 for resident RFG. Awardees with NREF projects in functional neurosurgery, pediatric neurosurgery, and neuro-oncology had the highest NREF impact ratios of $1:$194, $1:$185, and $1:$162, respectively. Of respondents, 9% became department chairs, 26% became full professors, 82% received at least 1 subsequent research grant, and 66% served as PI on a subsequent research grant after receiving their NREF awards.
CONCLUSIONS: In-training and early-career neurosurgeons who were awarded NREF funding had significant success in acquiring subsequent grant support, research productivity, and achievements of academic rank. NREF grants provide a tremendous return on investment across various career stages and subspecialities. They also appeared to have a broader impact on trajectory of research and innovation within the field of neurosurgery.