Production of the scientific societies of medical students in Peru

Abstract

Introduction: Medical schools in Peru play an important role in scientific production and health development nationwide. The Scientific Societies of Medical Students promote research among their members. However, the evolution and impact of their scientific production in their respective universities are not known. Objective: To describe the scientific production of the Scientific Societies of Medical Students in Peru during the period 2002-2018. Methods: Descriptive study that analyzed the scientific articles published during 2002-2018 by any of the Scientific Societies of Medical Students affiliated with the Peruvian Student Medical Scientific Society. These articles were collected through systematic search and self-report by the members of the societies. Also, in each case, the contribution of the universities of origin to Scopus scientific production was calculated. Results: The Peruvian Student Medical Scientific Society registered 39 affiliated Scientific Societies of Medical Students, which published 856 scientific articles between 2002 and 2018. There was an increasing trend in the number of articles. Of that total, 407 (47.6%) were original articles, 390 (45.6%) were indexed in Scopus and 580 (67.8%) had a member of a Society as their first author. The median number of articles by Scientific Societies of Medical Students was 11 (range: 1 to 154). During the 2015-2018 period, in 9 of 34 universities, the Scientific Societies of Medical Students contributed to Scopus more than a quarter of the scientific production of their university. Conclusions: The Scientific Societies of Medical Students presented a diverse scientific production and, in several cases, contributed significantly to the production of scientific articles at their universities.