Female Physician Representation In Vascular Surgery Audio and Visual Education Materials
Christina Tran, Angelyn Thayer, Isibor Arhuidese, Mary Ottinger, Jay Natarajan, Obada Kattih, Whitney Williams
University of South Florida, Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL
Background: In recent decades, US medical schools have seen an increase in female matriculants with more matriculating females than males from 2017-2020; however, this trend has not been reflected in vascular surgery training programs. In 2020, only 35% of 0+5 residents and 30% of fellows in 5+2 paradigms were female. Prior studies have also demonstrated fewer women in academic and vascular surgery society leadership positions. Our study evaluated female physician representation in educational materials aimed specifically at medical students and trainees routinely performing vascular interventions.Methods: We performed a review of online educational resources focusing on vascular surgery topics including procedural and didactic content. Websites associated with US vascular surgery fellowship and residency programs, vascular equipment and device manufacturers, and vascular surgery related societies were systematically searched for educational materials targeted at physicians and physician trainees. The materials were in the form of videos, podcasts, pamphlets, and brochures. Those targeting the public or physician specialties not performing vascular interventions were excluded. Our primary outcome was to identify material with one or more female physicians depicted in an operative role or as an expert discussant. Subgroup comparisons included industry versus university/hospital materials and materials according to vascular education topics.Results: Of the 630 educational materials evaluated, 115 (18.25%) depicted at least one female in the physician role versus 515 (81.7%) materials depicting a male physician. Eleven of the materials evaluated depicted only the hands of the operators, making determination of gender impossible, though 3 of these videos were narrated by a male and 2 narrated by a female. In subgroup analysis, 24 materials depicted an assistant; 8 (33.3%) were female while 20 (83.3%) were male. Of the 209 industry-related materials, 17.2% depicted females versus 18.8% of the 421 university/hospital-sponsored materials. Subgroup analysis by vascular topic was also performed. Media featuring more than one topic or relatively uncommon topics were categorized as miscellaneous. Female physicians were most prominently represented in media addressing professional development (69.57%), vascular medicine (40%), and venous subjects (25%). They were least represented in materials discussing dialysis (5.13%), cerebrovascular (9%), and peripheral vascular (11.4%) topics. Conclusions: Though the number of females matriculating into medical school has outweighed the number of males in recent years, this trend is not mirrored in vascular surgery training programs. This disparity is reflected in educational materials published by vascular surgery-associated societies, universities, hospitals, and industry. These results indicate a need for increased female representation in educational materials aimed at trainees and medical students, as female recruitment becomes increasingly pivotal in a medical landscape with a closing gender gap. 
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