2024 Volume 60 Issue 7 Pages 969-977
Purpose: The appropriate number of pediatric surgeons is a subject of discussion in Japan. To facilitate productive discussion, objective data collection was performed and comparisons were made among regions and with data from other countries.
Methods: The postgraduation year of pediatric surgeons listed in the “List of Board-certified Pediatric Surgeons in Certified Facilities” by the Japanese Society of Pediatric Surgeons was investigated using the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare website. The following parameters were calculated along with birth rates and the number of facilities in each region. Comparisons with data from other countries were performed as well.
(A) Sufficiency of pediatric surgeons: Number of pediatric surgeons per 10,000 births.
(B) Centralization of facilities and number of pediatric surgeons within the facility: Annual birth numbers covered by each facility and number of pediatric surgeons per facility.
(C) Intergenerational ratio: Numbers of pediatric surgeons with 20 or fewer postgraduation years per one pediatric surgeon with 31 or more postgraduation years.
(D) Resources for training young pediatric surgeons: Annual births per pediatric surgeon with 20 or fewer postgraduation years.
Results: Inter-regional differences were approximately 1.5 to 4 times for each of the four parameters. The main age group of pediatric surgeons in the facilities surveyed included those with 24 or fewer postgraduation years.
Conclusions: There were regional differences in the parameters surveyed, and significant variations were observed among the countries studied. It is expected that the current study will provide objective values for the current status of pediatric surgeons in Japan.
