Thirty Years of Family Medicine Publications in Israel (1975-2004) – What, Where, and How Much?

Thirty Years of Family Medicine Publications in Israel (1975-2004) – What, Where, and How Much? Pshetizky Y, Tandeter H, Tabenkin H, Vinker S, Lahad A, Karkabi K, Kitai E, Hermoni D, Shvartzman P

Background • Is primary care research a lost cause? Lancet 2003

Background • Building a healthy research enterprise is central to family medicine’s ability to provide the best possible care to patients and is important to the future of the discipline.

Background • Primary care needs an evidence base • Primary care research should focus on clinical practice • Primary care research can affect clinical practice • Achieving integration with clinical care

Major obstacles to research • Lack of faculty time (78%) • Lack of funding for faculty (61%) • Lack of staff, equipment and supplies (48%) • Lack of research skills (45%) • Lack of role models (43%).

Medical students who choose a residency in family medicine • Less likely to select this specialty because of research interests. • Less likely to participate in research projects during medical school, and after graduation. • Less likely to plan on a career that involves research.

METHODS

Publications were identified by two methods: • A search in PubMed by names of current and past faculty from all the departments of FM in Israel (1975-2004) • All the departments in Israel forwarded a list of all publications by their faculty (including those that do not appear in MEDLINE).

Methods • The abstracts of all publications were extracted and separately and blindly evaluated by two reviewers. • Publications were classified according to MEDLINE citation, language, journal impact factor, and publication type.

Methods • Publications were classified according to the following categories: • Citation in MEDLINE (yes/no) • Language (Hebrew/ English/ other) • Journal Impact Factor <3 or >3: • >3 • <3

Types of publication: • Case Reports/series – A patient or several patients are presented with relevant literature review. • Review– a summary of a topic. • Research - descriptive and hypothesis-driven studies, evaluation of educational and service programs, where data is collected using a questionnaire or other methods whether qualitative or quantitative and than analyzed.

Results

Publications by family medicine specialists physicians, 1975-2004

Number of publications per 1000 FM board certified physicians in Israel, 1975-2004

Publication output of FM physicians in Israel • On average is 85.4 publications/1000 FM physicians/year. • For FM physicians with an academic affiliation (data available for 2000-2004 only), is 334.3 publications/ 1000 academic FM physicians/ year.

Discussion • Compared to Australia, these figures are significantly higher : • Publication output of GPs only 1/1000 GPs per year (over the period 1990-1999). • The publications productivity/year of internists in Australia was reported to be 105/1000, and surgeons 61/1000.

Conclusion • This study is unique as it summarizes thirty years of scientific publication activity in Israel and thus provides an important tool for evaluation of research and publications productivity in family medicine

Conclusion • In order to develop as a profession and compete with other clinical disciplines, it will be important to demonstrate increasing productivity in research and publications.

Conclusion • Israeli family physicians have a significantly high publication rate which should serve as a motivational tool and provide impetus in their further development as an academic profession.

Conclusion • נמצאה עליה ברורה בפרסומים באנגלית עם אימפקט פקטור גבוה יותר ואחוז גבוה יותר של מאמרים מחקריים

Thirty Years of Family Medicine Publications in Israel (1975-2004) – What, Where, and How Much?