A point system for resident scholarly activity.

Encouraging resident scholarly activity is challenging. One Army family medicine program was struggling to get residents to fulfill their requirements. Projects were not being completed, and publication or presentation of results was rare. A novel "scholarly activity point" system was introduced that expanded the types of scholarly activity residents could participate in while still encouraging clinical research. Since implementation, the number of residents successfully publishing and presenting scholarly projects has risen sharply. The point system has resulted in an increase in resident enthusiasm for scholarship, a change in the academic culture, and a dramatic rise in scholarly output.