Queen Bee Phenomenon—Repairing the Hive in Surgery

Abstract

In the past few decades, women in medicine have made great strides toward equal representation. However, compared with the general body of medicine, the increase in the number of women surgeons has been disproportionately stagnant, with even fewer women in positions of leadership. 1 In this issue of JAMA Surgery, Zogg and colleagues 2 used a survey-based assessment of Fellows of the American College of Surgeons (FACS) and Association of Women Surgeons (AWS) members to explore the role of surgeon gender in career aspirations, gender-based discrimination, mentormentee relationships, perceived barriers, and recommendations for change.Their results highlight the disparities in gender experiences in surgery, with women surgeons reporting higher levels of gender-based disparities (47.3% vs 96.3% FACS and 94.8% AWS; P < .001) and lower rates of gender-concordant mentors (57.5% vs 92.3%; P < .001). 2 Their qualitative findings were particularly interesting. When participants were surveyed on how women surgeons may best improve the female surgeon experience, the most common response identified was to "Support each other and stop creating competition," followed closely by "Do not ignore disparities or implicit bias," and "Be a mentor/ sponsor to other women surgeons." 2