Speaker Representation at the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress: A Comparative Analysis of 2004, 2014,...

Gender gaps in surgery exist across multiple domains. We sought to analyze the progress made during the last 20 years by comparing the representation of women among moderators, oral presentations, and research awards at the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress (ACSCC) in 2004, 2014, and 2024. We hypothesized that representation of women in all 3 categories would increase but not achieve parity.

Invited panel moderators, scientific abstracts selected for oral presentations, and research award recipients at the 2004, 2014, and 2024 ACSCC were retrospectively reviewed. Participants' gender (based on published pronouns), training level, academic rank, specialty, institution type, and research category were extracted. Data were analyzed with chi-square tests for differences by year and gender.

A total of 1,248 oral presentations, 568 panel moderators, and 92 award recipients were identified. Women's first authorship significantly increased each decade (20.8%, 36.2%, and 48.6%, p < 0.001). Similarly, increases were seen at the senior authorship (7.9%, and 18.4%, 30.0%, p < 0.001) and panel moderator levels (10.9%, 30.0%, and 40.1%, p < 0.001). Among moderators, the proportion of women associate professors increased (15.4%, 15.7%, 39.8%, p < 0.001) but full professors decreased (46.2%, 61.4%, and 28.9%, p < 0.001). Across all 3 years, recipients of the "Excellence in Research Award" did not significantly differ in gender.

Representation of women among presenters and moderators at the ACSCC has increased significantly from 2004 to 2024, and research awardees did not differ significantly by gender. First authorships have nearly reached parity, but substantial gaps persist at the senior authorship and moderator levels. This highlights the potential to increase research opportunities for mid and senior faculty. Future institutional and societal interventions to target these faculty could further promote equity and research visibility.