Gender gap in surgical societies awards

Despite remarkable progress, gender inequality in medicine remains a significant issue. This disparity extends beyond clinical practices and educational programs; it is also evident in the recognition and awards received by surgeons. Underrepresentation of women in Surgical Society awards is a multi-layered issue that needs a holistic approach since these awards are used to hire, promote, and advance surgeons.

A retrospective observational study was performed between 1936 and 2023 on all recipients of awards from 22 surgical societies. The study examines the relationship between recipient gender and award year. Medians, and interquartile ranges (IQRs) were used for continuous data, and frequencies and percentages were used for categorical data. Chi-square and Wilcoxon rank sum tests were used to compare female and male recipients. Multiple logistic regression was used to estimate the probability that a female will receive an award.

A total of 2588 awards were given out between 1936 and 2023. Among the 2588 awards, 2024 went to male surgeons, and 564 to female surgeons. Since 1936, there have been 0-25 women awarded annually, with a proportion of female awardees between 0 and 0.5. Since 1936, the proportion of women awardees has increased significantly (p < 0.01). Since 2006, female award winners have increased by 0.7% (95% CI 0.007-0.008, p = 0.001) when controlling for surgical societies. A woman's odds of receiving an award from a surgical society have increased by only 3% per year since 2006 (OR 1.03, 95% CI 1.01-1.07, p = 0.004). Accordingly, female surgeon awards grew from 0.22 in 2006 to 0.35 in 2023.

Female surgeons' continuous underrepresentation in Surgical Society awards is a crucial issue. The selection process of surgical societies needs to be more intentional as female recipients have steadily increased in recent years. Closing this gender gap is not only a matter of fairness but also imperative for the field's progress.