Barriers to orthopedic surgery research productivity in Saudi Arabia

Table 1 Characteristics of survey respondents, n (%)

Characteristics	n = 105
Sex
Male	86 (81.9)
Female	19 (18.1)
Age, mean ± SD	38.5 ± 10.22
Minimum	24
Maximum	68
Level of practice
Resident	27 (25.7)
Fellow	13 (12.4)
Specialists	12 (11.4)
Consultant (academic)	28 (26.7)
Consultant (non-academic)	25 (23.8)
Practice hospital
University hospital	50 (47.6)
Public hospital	56 (53.3)
Private hospital/clinic	28 (26.7)
Subspecialty
Pediatric orthopedic	24 (22.9)
Arthroplasty	15 (14.3)
General orthopedic	13 (12.4)
Orthopedic trauma	12 (11.4)
Sport medicine	11 (10.5)
Spine	9 (8.6)
Upper extremity	8 (7.6)
Foot and ankle	6 (5.7)
Orthopedic oncology	6 (5.7)
Deformity	7 (6.7)
Years in practice
< 5	43 (41)
5-10	21 (20)
11-20	23 (21.9)
> 20	18 (17.1)
Number of patients seen per week
1-20	25 (23.8)
21-40	25 (23.8)
41-60	30 (28.6)
> 60	25 (23.8)

Table 2 Characteristics of respondents’ research activities, n (%)

Research activity type	n = 105
Any prior research work	94 (89.5)
Allocated research time
None	43 (41)
< 10%	43 (41)
10%-50%	19 (18.1)
Primary investigator in the last year
None	62 (59)
1-4	38 (36.2)
> 5	5(4.8)
Primary investigator in the last 5 years
None	38 (36.2)
1-4	46 (43.8)
≥ 5	11 (10.5)
> 10	10 (9.5)
Co-author in the last year
None	36 (34.3)
1-4	58 (55.2)
≥ 5	11 (10.5)
Co-author in the last 5 years
None	17 (16.2)
1-4	54 (51.4)
≥ 5	34 (32.3)
Type of prior research study participation
Randomized controlled trial	8 (7.6)
Prospective cohort	22 (21)
Retrospective	67 (63.8)
Cross-sectional	47 (44.8)
Case report	76 (72.4)
Narrative review	10 (9.5)
Systemic review	25 (23.8)

Table 3 Single most limiting barrier or goal based on the level of practice, n (%)

Level of practice	Single most limiting barrier to research participation		Single most important goal for research participation
Resident	Insufficient research time	14 (43.8)	Improvement of personal CV	19 (54.3)
Fellow	Insufficient research time	3 (9.4)	Improvement of personal CV	9 (25.7)
Specialist	Insufficient research time	5 (15.6)	Enhancement of research skills	4 (28.6)
Consultant (academic)	Lack of research assistants	11 (64.7)	Personal interest in research activities	13 (48.1)
Consultant (non-academic)	Insufficient research time	7 (21.9)	For promotion/reward	8 (32)

CV: Curriculum vitae.

Table 4 Single most limiting barrier or goal based on subspecialties, n (%)

Subspecialty	Single most limiting barrier to research participation		Single most important goal for research participation
General orthopedics	Insufficient research time	5 (15.6)	Personal interest in research activities	4 (14.8)
Pediatric orthopedics	Lack of funding	4 (36.4)	For promotion/reward	9 (36)
Spine	Lack of research assistants	3 (17.6)	Personal interest in research activities	4 (14.8)
Foot and ankle	Insufficient research time	3 (9.4)	Improvement of personal curriculum vitae	3 (8.6)
Orthopedic oncology	Lack of research assistants	3 (17.6)	Personal interest in research activities	3 (11.1)
Orthopedic trauma	Lack of research collaboration	2 (33.3)	For promotion/reward	5 (20)
Sports medicine	Lack of funding	3 (27.3)	For promotion/reward	6 (24)
Upper extremity	Lack of research assistants	3 (17.6)	Personal interest in research activities	4 (14.8)
Arthroplasty	Lack of research assistants	4 (23.5)	Enhancement of research skills	5 (35.7)
Deformity	Lack of research assistants	3 (17.6)	For promotion/reward	3 (12)