Evaluation of gender bias in thoracic surgery in Türkiye: A descriptive study

This study aims to investigate the challenges that female thoracic surgeons in Türkiye faced to due to gender bias in their professional lives.

Between January 2024 and April 2024, a total of 73 female thoracic surgeons (mean age: 37.1±7.4 years; range, 25 to 53 years) who were working in Türkiye and completed a 44-question survey were included. The online questionnaire was sent by email. It was also shared and disseminated in communication groups (WhatsApp).

Of the 73 participants, 45.2% thought that their academic progress was made more difficult due to being women, 49.3% thought that female surgeons were less likely to have influence in their department, and this perception was more prevalent among specialists than among residents (p=0.029). A total of 64.4% of the participants reported being subjected to mobbing in their professional life due to being women. In addition, 56.2% participants thought that they were taken less seriously by patients, as they were women, and this thought was particularly more prevalent among resident physicians (p=0.038). Totally 75.3% of the participants were subjected to verbal or physical violence by patients or their relatives, and 85% thought that the career of female surgeons would be more affected when they had children compared to male surgeons with children. Also, 42.5% of the participants postponed or would postpone pregnancy to a later time.

Our study highlights the urgent need for change by revealing the challenges faced by female thoracic surgeons in Türkiye, including obstacles in training, professional advancement, and achieving a balance between work, children, and family life, all of which are exacerbated by gender bias.