Letter to the Editor: What You Can Do to Support Women in Orthopaedics Worldwide.

Abstract

To the Editor, I read the editorial entitled “What You Can Do to Support Women in Orthopaedics Worldwide” [1] with great interest. I had a good experience during residency (6 years ago, as of this writing) in South Africa. The most inflammatory comment I received was, “Don’t get pregnant.” I was not planning to get pregnant during my residency, so I didn’t pay much attention to the remark. While my experience in residency was a good one, there were few women specializing during my years, and I did not have any women role models or mentors. During my fellowship in the United Kingdom, I was surrounded by confident, female orthopaedists who were excellent surgeons. I had finally found my tribe! I returned to South Africa for a job opportunity and decided to create a society for women in orthopaedics. The idea was to offer support to junior women in orthopaedics, improve retention of women surgeons, and ultimately improve their training experiences. I called it the South African Female Orthopaedic Surgeons’ Society (SAFOSS). I have also joined Women in Orthopaedics Worldwide and the International Orthopaedic Diversity Alliance. Both organizations are gaining traction within our specialty. As devastating as COVID-19 has been, it has normalized virtual meetings and improved international relations. This has been great for those in developing nations who find it difficult to attend international meetings. In the editorial [1], Dr. Leopold includes a section entitled “Questions for Men to Ask”. This section is important, and it really resonated with me. Despite an increase in women applying for specialization in South Africa, and university orthopaedic departments employing more women and minorities, in my view, the orthopaedic fraternity has fallen short of inclusion and belonging. And asking these hard questions regarding scientific sessions, networking events, and promotions is necessary. Skilled female surgeons need to chair scientific sessions like their male counterparts. Female surgeons with the necessary leadership skills should be given the chance to sit at the table and participate. They need to be valued for their contribution to orthopaedics and taken seriously as experts in their field. Many people who are self-styled women’s advocates or “allies” are good at “talking the talk” but not nearly as good at “walking the walk.” I never noticed how our specialty’s networking functions were focused on events oriented towards men until I stopped to think about it. For example, I can recall playing Par-3 golf and going clay-pigeon shooting and not even thinking it was odd! Another orthopaedic department plays cricket for its end-of-year function. I thought your questions were so inspiring that I used them in a presentation at our annual South African Orthopaedic Association meeting. The situation in South Africa is slowly improving, and there are departments that are more inclusive than others. My own department feels like family, and I feel protected and valued. We had our first baby shower in the department—it was lovely to celebrate a resident’s pregnancy instead of seeing it as a liability! SAFOSS is independent, but a recognized subsidiary of our main association. This is a start. We currently have 68 members consisting of attendings, residents, and medical officers (preresidency, but working only in orthopaedics). This is pretty good considering that there have been only 51 qualified orthopaedic surgeons in our country’s history. (Yes, I said “history”). Thank you for asking the tough questions and asking other men to do the same. I, and I believe all the women in orthopaedics, appreciate your stance. #HeForShe.