European women in neurosurgery: I – A chronology of trailblazers

Hernández-Durán, Silvia; Murphy, Mary; Kim, Eliana; Al-Shehhi, Noora; Broekman, Marike; Praeter, Mania De; Dubuisson, Annie; Emery, Évelyne; Gazioğlu, Nurperi; Grossman, Rachel; Janssen, Insa; Karampouga, Maria; Khorbaladze, Lika; Lambrianou, Xanthoula; Lippa, Laura; Magnadottir, Hulda B.; Mihaylova, Stiliana; Pajaj, Ermira; Rabiei, Katrin; Rodríguez-Hernández, Ana; Τάσιου, Αναστασία; Vayssière, Pia; Rosseau, Gail

doi:10.1016/j.jocn.2021.01.026

Cited by 11 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Neurosurgical workforce data were obtained for 210 nations through 42 included sources ( Supplemental Digital Content 2, Supplemental Table 1 , http://links.lww.com/NEU/E46). 1,17,18,22-61 A world map denoting total neurosurgeons per capita is shown in Figure 1. The color scale denotes countries in green if they have at least 1 neurosurgeon per 200 000 population as this has been described as the minimum requirement for essential neurosurgical workforce to address neurotrauma in low- and middle-income countries.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Women Neurosurgeons Worldwide: Characterizing the Global Female Neurosurgical Workforce

Vaca,

Theologitis,

Zygourakis

2023

Neurosurgery

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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: As the global neurosurgical workforce expands, so do the contributions of women neurosurgeons. Recent studies highlighted pioneering women leaders in neurosurgery and provided invaluable perspectives into the proportion of women neurosurgeons in regions across the world. To provide a broad perspective of global trends, this study aims to characterize the global female neurosurgical workforce and evaluate its association with countries' economic status, broader physician workforce, and global gender gap index (GGGI). METHODS: A literature search included studies dated 2016–2023 characterizing the neurosurgical workforce. Total neurosurgeons, neurosurgeons per capita, and percent of women neurosurgeons by country were collected or calculated from available data. Countries were stratified by World Health Organization (WHO) region, World Bank economic classification, WHO physician workforce, and GGGI. Poisson regressions and Spearman correlation tests were performed to evaluate the association between each country's percent of women neurosurgeons and their economic classification, WHO physician workforce, and GGGI. RESULTS: Neurosurgical workforce data were obtained for 210 nations; world maps were created demonstrating neurosurgeons per capita and proportion of women neurosurgeons. Africa had the fewest neurosurgeons (1296) yet highest percentage of women neurosurgeons (15%). A total of 94 of 210 (45%) countries met the minimum requirement of neurosurgeons needed to address neurotrauma. Compared with low-income countries, upper-middle–income and high-income countries had 27.5 times greater the rate of neurosurgeons per capita but only 1.02 and 2.57 times greater percentage of women neurosurgeons, respectively (P < .001). There was a statistically significant association between GGI and women neurosurgeons (P < .001) and a weak correlation between proportion of women in physician workforce and women neurosurgeons (P = .019, rho = 0.33). CONCLUSION: Much progress has been made in expanding the neurosurgical workforce and the proportion of women within it, but disparities remain. As we address the global neurosurgeon deficit, improving recruitment and retention of women neurosurgeons through mentorship, collaboration, and structural support is essential.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Women Neurosurgeons Worldwide: Characterizing the Global Female Neurosurgical Workforce

Vaca,

Theologitis,

Zygourakis

2023

Neurosurgery

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“…6 In that paper, the authors listed Alice Rosenstein from Breslau, Germany, who completed her training under Otfrid Foerster in 1929; Serafima Bryusova from Moscow, Russia, who trained with Nikolay Burdenko in the 1920s and 1930s at the then recently established Burdenko Institute; Diana Beck, who in 1939 took an apprenticeship with Sir Hugh Cairns in Oxford, United Kingdom, and whose first appointment as consultant was delayed by the war until she could take a post as consultant neurosurgeon at the Middlesex Hospital in London in 1947; 13 and Sofia Ionescu from Romania who graduated as a neurosurgeon in 1954. 14 In another equally recent paper by authors from "a global working group of women involved in neurosurgery in different countries," 1 Judith was briefly mentioned as follows:…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…

Recently, there has been an interest in unearthing and exploring the missing historical figures among pioneering women in the neurosurgical field, and many papers have been dedicated to this issue. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Unfortunately, one major figure has remained unrecognized: Judith Balkányi-Lepintre, a Hungarian-French neurosurgeon, who was not only the first woman neurosurgeon in France but also the first woman war neurosurgeon for the French Army and eventually the first woman pediatric neurosurgeon in France. This vignette provides an account of her neurosurgical career.

Judith's TrajectoryJudith Balkányi (Fig.

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confidence: 99%

Judith Balkányi-Lepintre (1912–1982): first woman neurosurgeon, first woman war neurosurgeon, and first woman pediatric neurosurgeon in France

Hariz

Erőss²,

Hariz

et al. 2022

Journal of Neurosurgery

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Recently, a series of historical reports portrayed the first women neurosurgeons in various countries. One such woman, a pioneer on many levels, remained unrecognized: Judith Balkányi-Lepintre. She was the first woman neurosurgeon in France, the first woman war neurosurgeon for the French Army, and the first woman pediatric neurosurgeon in France. Born in 1912 to a Hungarian Jewish family, she graduated with honors from medical school in Budapest in 1935, then moved to Paris where she started neurosurgical training in 1937 at L’Hôpital de la Pitié under the mentorship of Clovis Vincent, the founder of French neurosurgery. Shortly after marrying a French colleague in 1940, she had to escape the Geheime Staatspolizei (Gestapo) in Paris and ended up in Algeria, where she joined the French Army of De Gaulle. As a neurosurgeon, she participated in the campaigns of Italy and France between 1943 and 1945. After the war, she returned to work at La Pitié Hospital. In 1947, she defended her doctoral thesis, “Treatment of cranio-cerebral wounds by projectiles and their early complications.” Soon thereafter, she joined Europe’s first dedicated children’s hospital, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades in Paris, and contributed to the establishment of pediatric neurosurgery in France. She remained clinically and academically active at Necker until her death in 1982 but was never promoted.

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