A Review of Individual and Institutional Publication Productivity in Medical Radiation Science

Aims To investigate the research impact of active medical radiation science (MRS) researchers and the research output of MRS institutions globally. Methods An iterative search strategy was used to firstly identify productive MRS authors and then examine their productivity over a 5-year period (January 1, 2010–December 31, 2014) using “SciVal” (Elsevier). For each of the authors, the total number of publications in peer-reviewed journals, total number of citations, international collaboration metrics, number of citations per publication, h-index, and i10-index were extracted. Each author's total impact was then quantified. SciVal was also used to quantify the institutional activity. Results The 105 active authors identified came from 50 institutions worldwide. Most (73.3%) of the active authors had published at least five articles in peer-reviewed international journals within the period reviewed. The total citation count of all authors identified was 3,472 (range, 0–224). The h-index and i10-index of MRS researchers ranged from 0 to 24 (mean, 5.6) and 0 to 34 (mean, 2.48), respectively. Conclusion Findings demonstrate a low level of research activity and international collaboration among MRS authors. Data provided may help with strategic development goals and to identify potential collaborators and research supervisors internationally. Low publication rates and citations counts raise questions about the viability and sustainability of the MRS evidence base.