SynthesisCanadian journal of surgery. Journal canadien de chirurgie2018
A systematic review of the factors affecting choice of surgery as a career.
Synthesis in Canadian journal of surgery. Journal canadien de chirurgie, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 83 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
83 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 227 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- Gender bias, job satisfaction, and burnout among surgeons: Evidence from Korea.Surgery open science · 2026Article
- Exploring 3D anatomy: A free online course supporting novice learner inquiry and spatial conceptualization.Anatomical sciences education · 2026Article
- Effectiveness of a multi-surgical department online recruitment event 'GEKA-Navi' on career motivation and residency entry: a 5-year experience.Surgery today · 2026Article
- Timing and motivation behind the decision to become a surgeon: Gender and optimal recruitment insights.Surgery today · 2026Article
- Undergraduate medical student exposure to OMFS, a future workforce concern-a narrative review of the literature.Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England · 2026Review
- The global surgical workforce crisis: narrative review of the role of surgical educator development and technological innovations.Surgery today · 2026Review
- Influencing surgical career choice among final-year medical students: a multi-center cross-sectional study in Türkiye.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Predictive Career Factors for Medical Students Interested in Plastic Surgery.Plastic surgery (Oakville, Ont.) · 2026Article
- Sexual harassment at German medical schools - a national cross-sectional study.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- A new vision: a transformative approach to teach surgical anatomy to undergraduate medical students.International journal of surgery (London, England) · 2026Article
- Motivational factors associated with intentions to pursue anesthesiology among medical students: a cross-national study.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- How surgical rotations in medical school contribute to students' perceptions and aspirations of a career in surgery: A qualitative study.JPRAS open · 2025Article
- Using Hofstede's framework to explore surgical cultures and their impact on female surgeons.Medical education · 2025Article
- Student assistantships in orthopedic surgery : A strategy to counteract the declining interest in surgical careers.Orthopadie (Heidelberg, Germany) · 2025Article
- Winter is coming: Is the shine of surgery fading?Turkish journal of surgery · 2025Article
- The impact of a longitudinal mentorship program on medical students: A mixed-methods study.PloS one · 2025Article
- A cross-sectional investigation of trend in career specialty preference among clinical year medical undergraduates, including factors influencing preferences and discouragement.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Article
- Choosing a pediatric surgery career: affecting factors and status assessment.Pediatric surgery international · 2024Review
- A prospective cohort study on the role of surgical mentorship on medical students' surgical experience and attitudes towards surgery.BMC medical education · 2024Article
23 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundInterest in surgical careers among medical students has declined over the past decade. Multiple explanations have been offered for why top students are deterred or rejected from surgical programs, though no consensus has emerged.
methodsWe conducted a review of the literature to better characterize what factors affect the pursuit of a surgical career. We searched PubMed and EMBASE and performed additional reference checks. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and Newcastle-Ottawa Education scores were used to evaluate the included data.
resultsOur search identified 122 full-text, primary articles. Analysis of this evidence identified 3 core concepts that impact surgical career decision-making: gender, features of surgical education, and student "fit" in the culture of surgery.
conclusionReal and perceived gender discrimination has deterred female medical students from entering surgical careers. In addition, limited exposure to surgery during medical school and differences between student and surgeon personality traits and values may deter students from entering surgical careers. We suggest that deliberate and visible effort to include women and early-career medical students in surgical settings may enhance their interest in carreers in surgery.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.