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Objective: To identify whether there have been changes over time in the capacity of paediatric consultants to undertake research and if the activity differs between men and women.Design: Comparison of data from two surveys of UK paediatric consultants.Subjects: UK consultant members of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.Interventions: Surveys carried out in 2011 and 2015.Main Outcome Measures: The proportion of consultants with allocated time in job plans for research, academic appointments, postgraduate qualifications, publications, grant funding and supervision of PhD students.Results: The 2015 survey demonstrated 20% of consultants had one or more programmed activities (PAs) for research, but the average paid PA for research was 0.39 PA. Between the surveys, the proportion of consultants with honorary contracts had declined, and the proportion with a PhD or MDRes was 32% in 2011 compared with 26% in 2015 (p<0.001). In 2015, only 12% of consultants had at least one current grant. In 2011 and 2015, 51% and 54% respectively of consultants had not authored a publication in the preceding 2 years. In 2015, 92% of consultants were not currently supervising a PhD student, and 88% had never supervised a PhD student. In 2015, 25% of men and 12% of women had PAs for research (p<0.001). Women were less likely to hold an honorary or primary academic contract, have authored a publication or supervised a PhD student (all p<0.001).Conclusions: Research activity among paediatric consultants remains low, particularly among women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To determine if there had been changes in the size of the UK paediatric workforce and working patterns between 1999 and 2013.Design: Analysis of prospectively collected datasets.Setting: UK consultant paediatricians.Interventions: Data from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health's workforce census from 1999 to 2013 and the annual surveys of new paediatric Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) and Certificate of Equivalence of Specialist Registration (CESR) holders between 2010 and 2013.Main Outcome Measures: Paediatric consultant numbers, programmed activities (PAs) and resident shift working.Results: The UK paediatric consultant workforce grew from 1933 in 1999 to 3718 in 2013. Over the same time period, there was a decline in the number of consultants with a primary academic contract from 210 to 143. There was an increase in the proportion of consultants who were female (40% in 1999 to 50% in 2013, p<0.01). The median number of PAs declined from 11 in 2009 to 10 in 2013 (p<0.001) as did the median number of PAs for supporting professional activities (2.5-2.3, p<0.001). In 2013, 38% of new consultants in general paediatrics or neonatology were working resident shifts. Between 2009 and 2013, the proportion of less than full-time working consultants rose from 18% to 22%, which was more common among female consultants (35% vs 9%).Conclusion: The paediatric consultant workforce has doubled since 1999, but more are working less than full time. The decline in those with a primary academic contract is of concern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]