6, 9, 11, 14 The list utilized herein is a culmination of the criteria used in the original list and subsequent web site reviews. 12 These criteria have been refined and expanded by several subsequent web site reviews into more specific data points, allowing for tailored and more objective data collection. The criteria chosen to evaluate web site content was originally established by a program director and fellowship applicant in the sports medicine match. Google® search phrases were “program name + orthopaedic trauma fellowship” and “program name + orthopaedic surgery + trauma + fellowship.” Only the first page of search results was viewed. 15, 16 A hyperlink was determined to be functional if it routed the web browser to a web page where fellowship information could be accessed within two clicks. The accessibility of each program’s web site was assessed using the following criteria: the presence of a direct hyperlink in the OTA Fellowship Directory to the program’s web site, functionality of this link, and web site searchability using Google®. A followup analysis was performed in August 2017. Initial data collection and web searches were performed on January 27, 2017. This study was exempt from institutional review board (IRB) approval. The goal of the study herein was to determine the accessibility of orthopaedic trauma fellowship web sites and objectively evaluate their content. 6, 11, 14 To the best of our knowledge, no such analysis has been performed for the web sites of Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA) accredited trauma fellowships. Several orthopaedic subspecialties web sites have been analyzed based on their accessibility and content. 9 Both applicants and programs could benefit from accessible and quality web sites that help limit unnecessary interview expenditures and optimize a fellow-program match that is conducive to the satisfaction of both parties’ expectations and objectives. 8, 10 A recent survey of orthopaedic fellowship applicants found that information pertaining to operative experience, fellow autonomy, program prestige, and program faculty are valued most by applicants when forming their final rank list. Alternatively, adequate online information may allow applicants to apply more selectively early in the match process, decreasing interview costs for both themselves and programs. 8 Therefore, fellowship programs may attract more applications by providing accessible and comprehensive online information that is important to applicants. Specific to orthopaedics, some hand fellowship applicants valued a program’s web site over the opinions of their mentors and family. 1, 5 Web-based information has been specifically reported to influence the decisions of fellowship applicants. Online information, as a first line of information, can influence which programs they look more heavily into, thus potentially affecting their decision to apply to certain programs and how they compose their rank list. Postgraduate medical trainees across all specialties utilize the Internet to gather information and compare training programs.
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