Careers of women in academic surgery

AIM: The aim of our national survey was to determine personal, working, and career conditions of women in academic surgery in Germany. METHODS: A questionnaire with 47 items was sent to 261 female surgeons working in 36 departments of general, abdominal, trauma, and vascular surgery. A total of 134 (51.3%) from all 36 surgical departments responded with completed surveys. RESULTS: The mean age of the women was 35.1 years (range 27 to 54). Seventy-eight percent of the surgeons worked in departments for general or abdominal surgery, 17% in trauma, and 5% in vascular surgery. 45% of the women had finished residency and 19% were in faculty positions. Eighty percent of those asked were mostly or always content with their working conditions. However, 79% perceived career obstacles in academic surgery. The most frequently addressed obstructions were: predominant male structures (80%), the absence of mentoring programs (70%), too few operative cases per month (67%), and no equality of career opportunities compared to male surgeons (60%). CONCLUSIONS: To reduce career obstructions, which were reported by 79% of the female surgeons, and to encourage those 33% who wanted to leave academic surgery, it seems necessary to improve cooperation between female surgeons, department chairs, and governmental institutions.