Over the past 50 years, the science of pediatric rheumatology has grown exponentially due to an expansion in the understanding of complex rheumatic conditions and a surge in novel targeted therapeutics. Physician‐scientists in the field of pediatric rheumatology have played major roles in these advancements that have improved the care of children, adolescents and young adults with chronic and often life‐threatening systemic inflammatory diseases. Despite the critical role of the physician‐scientist in discovering and translating scientific advancements from the bench to bedside and vice versa that have catapulted the field of pediatric rheumatology, they remain an endangered species with a declining pipeline due to a variety of factors. In this article, we review the current landscape of the physician‐scientist pipeline for pediatric rheumatology on the 50 th anniversary of the formalization of the specialty in North America. We review challenges to maintaining a thriving physician‐scientist pipeline and discuss future perspectives.
Ogbu et al. (Mon,) studied this question.