Gender imbalances in Canadian academic surgical programs

What is it about?

Each of the academic surgical programs in Canada were reviewed. The gender breakdown of the leadership, as well as the entire faculty, was examined. Across all surgical specialties examined, women were underrepresented compared to the wider medical community. They were significantly underrepresented at higher levels of promotion and leadership within surgical departments. This is despite an increasing focus on diversity efforts and a growing number of women surgeons.

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Photo by Artur Tumasjan on Unsplash

Photo by Artur Tumasjan on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Despite a growing number of women surgeons, they are lacking at the highest levels of promotion in their fields. This suggests that there remain underlying biases or challenges that women surgeons face for promotion in their career paths. This study gave each of the academic surgical programs in Canada a baseline. Departments can assess their own faculty, look at their policies and use this information as a metric from which to see change.