Gender and healthcare leadership: Addressing critical knowledge gaps by explicitly considering the gendered concept of care.

Abstract

This scoping review of gender and healthcare leadership synthesized the barriers and facilitators at multiple levels employing a framework that integrates a specific focus on the concept of care. The 71 sources identified focus predominantly on barriers to women's leadership at the individual and team level and, to a lesser extent, at the organizational and system level. Facilitators tend to be presented as recommended actions than evaluated interventions. Healthcare leadership tends to ignore the gendered context of care elevating leaders who are least likely to provide such care. Where personal caregiving circumstances are considered, they are individualized, reflecting the literature in general. More critical analysis is needed to focus on women's experiences and how their gender can predetermine their success in achieving and being in leadership positions. Healthcare leadership researchers are encouraged to include gender and care-focused analyses and interventions to address the under-representation of women in healthcare leadership.