Women in Otolaryngology Hold Fewer Leadership Roles

What can be learned in evaluating the degree to which women are currently represented in otolaryngology leadership roles such as residency and fellowship directorships, or chair positions?

Bottom Line: Women are currently disproportionately underrepresented in otolaryngology leadership roles, but a shift may be taking place.

Background: Despite the increase in female representation in U.S. medical schools, women are still significantly underrepresented within many surgical specialties. Approximately one-third of otolaryngologists are women, yet women comprise a smaller portion of academic senior faculty and hold disproportionately fewer leadership roles than would be expected. 

Study Design: Cross-sectional analysis.

Setting:  American Medical Association Fellowship and Residency Interactive Database; Scopus database

Synopsis: Researchers compiled a list of directors of accredited otolaryngology residency programs and fellowships in the United States and Canada in 2017–2018. The Scopus database was used to gather the h-index, a measure of research productivity. Women were found to hold 15.3% of overall leadership positions and 5.1% of department chair positions. Women directors had practiced an average of 13.9±6.8 years, compared to men’s 20.3±9.4 years. The greatest proportion of women holding directorships were associate professors, whereas the majority of male directors were full professors; however, women are taking on directorship roles with fewer years of practice, lower academic ranks, and lower h-indices, possibly representing early involvement in leadership. Lack of female role models, inadequate mentoring, and issues of work-life balance, especially regarding childbearing and childrearing, are among the potential disparity factors. There are fewer women in the surgical pipeline, which is a multifactorial issue that includes attrition in the academic setting. Not every type of academic leadership position was evaluated for this study. Additionally, the h-index does not consider additional components that influence academic success, such as teaching, educational involvement, mentorship, and clinical productivity.

Citation: Epperson M, Gouveia CJ, Tabangin ME, et al. Female representation in otolaryngology leadership roles. Laryngoscope. 2020;130:1664-1669. doi:10.1002/lary.28308.