Abstract
Purpose :
In 2020, the US graduate medical education accreditation system merged into a unified match for all medical students. Little is known regarding how the merge will affect match rates of MD, DO, and International Medical Graduates (IMGs) in allopathic and osteopathic ophthalmology residencies. This study analyzes the representation of medical graduates within programs before and after the merge in an attempt to quantify the initial effects of the merge and investigates the impact of the medical degree held by residency program leadership on the selection of residents.
Methods :
Graduate degrees for 455 PGY-4s (pre-merge) and 460 PGY-2s (post-merge) in 110 ophthalmology residencies, as well as program directors’ degrees, were collected from program websites. Programs were then placed into 1 of 4 program categories: Allopathic with MD Leadership, Allopathic with DO Leadership, Osteopathic with MD Leadership, and Osteopathic with DO Leadership. The number of residents in each degree category was compared between PGY-2s and PGY-4s within their respective program category using a Welch’s T-test.
Results :
The majority of programs analyzed were allopathic with MD leadership (102/110). Within this group, DO representation decreased significantly for PGY-2s compared to PGY-4s (p<0.05) with an observed difference of 50%. The number of IMGs also decreased while MDs increased, but these differences were not significant. Only 1 allopathic program had DO leadership but had the greatest proportion of PGY-2 DOs (50%) among all allopathic programs. Notable discrepancies among osteopathic residencies with different leadership were observed but were not significant likely due to small sample size (n=7). There was no IMG representation among osteopathic programs.
Conclusions :
Initial results seem to indicate that the merge has mostly benefitted MDs at the expense of DOs and IMGs in the ophthalmology match. The degree held by program leadership also seems to be a factor in which type of medical graduate is preferred. Programs with leadership holding a differing medical degree seem to have greater diversity of MD/DO representation compared to programs with leadership of the same medical degree. We hope this study adds to the understanding of the overall effects of the merge and will be of use to graduates applying to ophthalmology residencies.
This abstract was presented at the 2023 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in New Orleans, LA, April 23-27, 2023.