by Imed Bouchrika
On May 11, 2023, Research.com released the 2nd edition of the annual ranking for the best scientists in the area of medicine. This report, which presents the list of leading scholars, is designed to offer the academic community more visibility and exposure to the influential research contributions made by those at the forefront of medicine.
What is more, we hope this report will inspire researchers, decision-makers, and entrepreneurs around the world to find out where leading experts are heading. It is a great opportunity for all of us to learn who are the leading experts in different research areas, in different countries, and within different universities and research institutions.
For the 2023 edition of the ranking, more than 20,000 scientist profiles on OpenAlex, CrossRef, and other bibliometric databases have been examined, with several indicators and metrics reviewed to consider each scientist’s inclusion in the ranking.
The D-index threshold for approving a scholar to be considered was set to 70 if most of one's publications were in the field of medicine. The inclusion criteria for scholars to be considered for the ranking of top scientists are based on the discipline h-index, the proportion of contributions made within the given discipline, and the awards and achievements of the scientists.
From the major advancements in understanding SARS-CoV-2 to the use of artificial intelligence in diagnosing diseases, research in medicine has continually produced discoveries that improve the future of human health and provide hope for humanity.
In 2022, medical scientists employed technology using federated machine learning in identifying a type of brain tumor called glioblastoma, which is very hard to distinguish from normal brain tissue. To address the shortage of liver donors, another group of scientists successfully repaired the human liver using lab-grown cells. In the area of breast cancer treatment, scientists were able to formulate a single-dose treatment that takes only 20 to 30 minutes.
These advancements do not just solve health challenges but also enhance health, reduce illness and disability, and lengthen life. Even the simplest discovery of the significant relationship between having sufficient sleep and calorie intake has unlocked powerful insights into solving the obesity problem. None of these breakthroughs would have been possible without the scientists in the field of medicine who continue to work together in advancing the field.
The full ranking for the 2023 list of the best medicine scientists can be found here:
BEST MEDICINE SCIENTISTS RANKING
Scientists from the United States dominate the list, with 597 scholars included in 2023, representing 59.7% of the whole ranking. What is more, 9 out of 10 scientists in the top 1% are from the United States.
The United Kingdom ranks second with 108 scientists.
The third spot was taken by Germany, which currently hosts 40 ranking scientists.
The other leading countries are the Netherlands with 34 scientists, Canada with 32 scientists, Australia with 29 scientists, and Italy with 22 scientists.
From having 599 ranked scientists in 2022, the number of scientists in the United States decreased to 597. Meanwhile, the total number of scientists from the U.K. increased from 106 to 108 in 2023.
From its previous 5th spot in the top 10 rankings, Germany moved up to the 3rd spot with 40 scientists. Scientists from Australia decreased from 40 in 2022 to 29 in 2023, which caused it to move from its previously held 3rd spot to the 6th spot in the 2023 ranking.
Please note that the country associated with a scientist is based on their affiliated research institution, not on their actual nationality.
In the 2023 edition of our ranking, Harvard University is the leader, with 62 scientists affiliated with that institution included in the ranking. Ranking second is the U.S. National Institutes of Health with 33 scientists, and third place is occupied by Mayo Clinic with 25 scholars.
American universities and institutions constitute 70% of the top 10 leading institutions, with the other three representing the U.K. (University College London, University of Oxford, and Imperial College London).
Only one out of 10 institutions affiliated with the top 1% of leading scientists are based outside the U.S. This spot is occupied by Shizuo Akira of Osaka University in Japan.
In 2022, Harvard University had 64 scientists in the ranking, while for the 2023 edition of the ranking, it was reduced to 62. Similarly, the number of ranked scientists from the National Institutes of Health declined from 36 in 2022 to 33 in 2023.
Among the top institutions, scientists from Brigham and Women's Hospital also decreased from 23 to 18, and scientists from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center from 24 to 17 scientists in 2023. Mayo Clinic stayed in the 3rd spot with 25 scientists.
Currently, there is no online medical school that grants a medical degree. Instead, online medical schools offer essential online healthcare degrees that can be earned remotely. In terms of research in medicine, online universities play a significant role in enabling scientists from around the globe to work together.
The widespread challenges posed by the pandemic required scientists to start embracing remote, long-distance collaboration. This move has delivered significant improvements in research collaboration, as reflected by an Oxford University study, which found that remote collaboration between academic teams from 1961-2020 has led to more scientific breakthroughs.
Since collaboration between multi-disciplinary teams is crucial to providing effective patient care, conducting research in tandem with medical schools is crucial. Increasingly, schools of medicine are seeing the benefits of cross-pollinating ideas across different institutions and online universities. At the same time, online degree programs related to healthcare benefit from this collaboration with other research institutions.
For North America, Professor Walter C. Willett from Harvard University is on top of the list with a world ranking of no. 1 as well. His D-index is 385.
For Asia, Professor Shizuo Akira from Osaka University, Japan, is ranked first in the region, with an H-index of 293. He’s also listed 7th in the world ranking.
For Oceania, Professor Nicholas G. Martin from the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Australia, ranks first in the region and ranks 67th in the ranking. He has a D-index of 209.
Professor Paul M. Ridker from the Imperial College London, U.K., leads the list in Europe with a world ranking of 16 as well.
Professor Dan J. Stein from the University of Cape Town, South Africa, ranks as the top scientist in Africa, with a world ranking of 279.
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Professor Cesar G. Victora from Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Brazil, is the highest-ranking scientist from South America, with a world ranking of 577.
The average D-index for the top 1% of scientists is 303 against an average of 164 for all scientists included in the ranking.
The scholar with the lowest index value who made it to the ranking in 2023 has a D-index of 138.
The average number of published articles for the top 1% of scientists in the ranking is 1750, against an average of 974 for all ranking scholars.
You can learn more about the methodology used to create the ranking here.
About Research.com
All research was coordinated by Imed Bouchrika, PhD, a computer scientist with a well-established record of collaboration on a number of international research projects with different partners from the academic community. His role was to make sure all data remained unbiased, accurate, and up-to-date.
Research.com is the number one research portal for science rankings. Our mission is to make it easier for professors, research fellows, and those studying for a PhD or a master’s degree to progress with their research and to ensure they are always up-to-date with the latest conferences around the world and publications related to their work. Research.com is also involved in the publication of an annual ranking of leading scientists in a wide range of scientific disciplines.
by Imed Bouchrika, Phd
by Imed Bouchrika, Phd
by Imed Bouchrika, Phd
by Imed Bouchrika, Phd
