Practice patterns and work environments that influence gender inequality among academic surgeons

Area of Science:

• Surgical Oncology
• Pediatric Surgery
• Health Equity

Background:

• Practice patterns and work environments can influence career progression in competitive surgical fields.
• Disparities in surgical specialties may contribute to the gender gap.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare board-certified pediatric surgeons based on specialist case volume and practice focus.
• To identify potential gender-based differences in surgical practice patterns and career advancement opportunities.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a 2000-2015 New York statewide dataset.
• Compared board-certified pediatric surgeons by specialist case volume and Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI).
• Analyzed 51 pediatric surgeons over 461 surgeon-years.

Main Results:

• Female surgeons had lower case volume (159 vs. 214 cases/year) and less focused practices (HHI 0.16 vs. 0.20).
• Female surgeons' networks were smaller, with fewer colleagues and lower annual case volumes.
• Despite lower overall volume, female surgeons performed a higher percentage of cases within their networks (49% vs. 36%).

Conclusions:

• Female surgeons encounter challenges potentially stemming from organizational inequities.
• Intentional scrutiny and changes are needed to address these disparities.
• Findings underscore the need for systemic improvements to ensure equitable career advancement for all surgeons.