Gender Gap in Leadership in Academic Medicine and Dentistry: What Are the Barriers? What Can Be Done To Correct It?

Abstract

The present study aimed to report the main barriers to women's advancement in leadership and high-rank academic positions in the fields of medicine and dentistry. An electronic search was conducted of the MEDLINE database using the PubMed search engine. The Google Scholar search engine was also used to access scholarly articles across all disciplines. A total of 173 reports and abstracts published in the English language were retrieved and evaluated for their content. Of these, 32 were initially selected and reviewed. Finally, 16 studies focusing on gender-related discrepancies in healthcare concerning leadership and academic advancement were included. The following themes emerged as the main contributors to the gender disparity in academic medicine and dentistry: 1) the lack of appropriate role models and mentorship for successful socialization of female faculty; 2) the lack of peer support for women's promotion through the academic ranks and their selection for executive administrative roles at equal rates as their male counterparts; and 3) implicit bias and negative stereotypes. A need exists to increase the number of female role models and enhance mentorship to increase the attraction toward academic careers in medicine and dentistry. Cultural changes also are required at an institutional and organizational level to embrace diversity. The implicit biases against women's promotion to higher academic ranks must be addressed.