Commentary: American Association for Thoracic Surgery Summer Intern Scholarship: Captivating the interest of medical students

Central MessageTo accommodate necessary growth in the field of cardiothoracic surgery, we must continually review impactful programs that increase exposure to the specialty.See Article page 1419. To accommodate necessary growth in the field of cardiothoracic surgery, we must continually review impactful programs that increase exposure to the specialty. See Article page 1419. The projected cardiothoracic (CT) surgeon workforce is dwindling while the need for CT procedures is increasing.1Moffatt-Bruce S. Crestanello J. Way D.P. Williams T.E. Providing cardiothoracic services in 2035: signs of trouble ahead.J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2018; 155: 824-829Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (51) Google Scholar To accommodate necessary growth in the field, significant early exposure to CT surgery is critical. This is especially true given that general surgery residents have decreasing thoracic surgery exposure, and integrated CT surgery residents often commit to the specialty by their second year of medical school.2Ragalie W.S. Termuhlen P.M. Little A.G. Changes in thoracic surgery experience during general surgery residency: a review of the case logs from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.Ann Thorac Surg. 2016; 102: 2095-2098Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (14) Google Scholar,3Tchantchaleishvili V. Barrus B. Knight P.A. Jones C.E. Watson T.J. Hicks G.L. Six-year integrated cardiothoracic surgery residency applicants: characteristics, expectations, and concerns.J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2013; 146: 753-758Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (37) Google Scholar Chan and colleagues4Chan P. Liang S. Smood B. Fann J.I. Kilic A. American Association for Thoracic Surgery summer intern scholarship—over a decade of experience.J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2022; 163: 1419-1427Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (3) Google Scholar report the experience of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) Summer Intern Scholarship, an 8-week program that pairs first- and second-year medical students with an AATS member who sponsors them at a host institution. Awardees submit a final report and attend the AATS Annual Meeting. The authors examined a database of all awardees from the program's inception in 2007 to 2017; they also administered a questionnaire sent to awardees about their experience. There were 356 awardees from 41 medical schools and 39 host institutions over the 11-year period. Most awardees were male (64%) and from American medical schools (94%); racial distribution was not reported. Questionnaire responses were impressive. The program was recommended by 98.7% of respondents, and 81% cited this program as influential in their specialty choice, irrespective of the resulting specialty. Most reported exposure to their sponsor daily (63%) and exposure to the operating room at least weekly (88%). All the respondents performed research, and approximately one half published or presented their work. There were some limitations due to the ad hoc nature of the questionnaire. It was sent to the 72% of awardees with known e-mail addresses, and there was a 29% response rate, so the sample represented only 21% of awardees. The respondents were 3 to 13 years removed from the program, with recent respondents still in training. While 15% of all awardees pursued CT surgery, at least 37% of respondents pursued or were planning to pursue the specialty. Thus, the respondents were a heterogeneous group in terms of career stage and unlikely to be representative of the awardees overall. In addition, some demographic data, such as race/ethnicity, was unavailable. Women were in the minority (36%) of awardees, with a wide range reported year-to-year (20%-47%). The overall award rate also varied widely (22%-100%). Understanding these demographic changes is important for increasing diversity in the program and our specialty. Other scholarships, such as the Women in Thoracic Surgery scholarship, provide mentorship for underrepresented groups and report increased recruitment into CT surgery.5Williams K.M. Hironaka C.E. Wang H. Bajaj S.S. O'Donnell C.T. Sanchez M. et al.Women in thoracic surgery scholarship: impact on career path and interest in cardiothoracic surgery.Ann Thorac Surg. 2021; 112: 302-307Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (37) Google Scholar There are several ways to increase interest in CT surgery via meaningful exposure.6Trehan K. Zhou X. Yang S.C. Is medical student interest in cardiothoracic surgery maintained after receiving scholarship awards?.Ann Thorac Surg. 2015; 100: 926-931Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Google Scholar, 7Allen J.G. Weiss E.S. Patel N.D. Alejo D.E. Fitton T.P. Williams J.A. et al.Inspiring medical students to pursue surgical careers: outcomes from our cardiothoracic surgery research program.Ann Thorac Surg. 2009; 87: 1816-1819Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (44) Google Scholar, 8George J. Combellack T. Lopez-Marco A. Aslam U. Ahmed Y. Nanjaiah P. et al.Winning hearts and minds: inspiring medical students into cardiothoracic surgery through highly interactive workshops.J Surg Educ. 2017; 74: 372-376Crossref PubMed Scopus (23) Google Scholar The AATS Summer Intern Scholarship employs a multipronged approach through research, mentorship, and clinical experiences and is associated with an increase in CT surgery commitment. The authors offer excellent suggestions to improve the program and its continued evaluation, such as a standardized curriculum and creation of an alumni mentorship network. In addition, questionnaires administered immediately after the program would increase representation and accuracy, and long-term follow-up would help determine which aspects of the program are most impactful. As a specialty, we could then continue to invest in increasingly effective programs. American Association for Thoracic Surgery Summer Intern Scholarship—Over a decade of experienceThe Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular SurgeryVol. 163Issue 4PreviewThe study objective was to evaluate the experience of previous American Association for Thoracic Surgery Summer Intern Scholarship recipients. Full-Text PDF