31932 Mentorship opportunity for female dermatologists seeking to balance family and career

Abstract

Background: Women’s representation in medicine has increased drastically, however, a sex gap remains in higher academic leadership. This study aims to explore potential reasons for this gap through analyzing survey feedback from dermatologists in a variety of practice settings. Methods: We used REDcap to collect 144 surveys from dermatologists actively practicing in the United States. Results: Sixty responses came from the Women’s Dermatologic Society, 46 came from the Association of Professors of Dermatology, and 38 came from Facebook groups. Of the total included respondents, 84% were female. Forty-six respondents worked in private practice, 89 worked in academics, 8 worked in a combination of private practice and academics, and 1 person did not describe practice type. Differences between academics and private practice respondents were seen in questions related to mentorship and goals. In academics, 71% of respondents reported having a relatable mentor while only 46% of those in private practice reported having a relatable mentor (P = .008). Few reported having a mentor that helps balance career and family (27% in academics, 24% in private practice, P = .86). Respondents who report being responsible for a distinct majority of nonfinancial family-oriented tasks such as housekeeping and childcare were less likely to report having a relatable mentor. Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that female dermatologists seeking to balance career and family aspirations report may benefit from increased mentorship and support. This may be one area that if addressed could lead to fewer gender disparities in dermatology leadership positions.