Pediatric Emergency Medicine and Mentoring: What Women Want

Women in medicine have reported gender-specific obstacles to career success, such as a dearth of mentors and role models. Pediatric emergency medicine (PEM) is a female-dominated subspecialty of pediatrics yet is still impacted by gender inequality in many areas. No previous study has explored mentoring experiences of women PEM physicians and the impact on their career trajectory. We sought to explore the experiences of female PEM physicians with mentorship to determine aspects of mentoring that were successful or unsuccessful.

This was a qualitative study with criterion sampling of female PEM physicians. Members of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section of Emergency Medicine completed semistructured interviews in 2022, recorded and transcribed verbatim. Our research team consisted of 3 PEM physicians. Using the constant comparative method, we analyzed transcripts by inductively developing codes, grouping codes into categories, and refining codes, descriptions, and group assignments to identify themes. Interpretations of and relationships among themes were iteratively discussed and revised by the team.

Twenty-two participants were interviewed via telephone. The mean age of participants was 44 years old, and the majority (73%) identified as White, non-Hispanic, and at the rank of assistant professor (45%). Four themes were identified: (1) benefits of mentorship (recognition of need for mentorship and finding professional success), (2) finding mentors (processes to find mentors and mentor roles), (3) characteristics of successful mentors (personal and professional), and (4) impact of mentorship (career advancement or career sabotage).

We identified 4 themes that could be incorporated into mentoring programs and are associated with successful experiences for women PEM physicians. The detail and descriptions in our data provide guidance for mentoring programs that specifically address the needs of women in PEM.