Sex Differences in Achievement and Faculty Rank in Academic Infectious Diseases

Abstract

Background This study assesses differences in faculty rank between female and male infectious diseases (ID) faculty with academic appointments at US medical schools. Methods We analyzed a complete database of US physicians with medical school faculty appointments in 2014. This database consists of a linkage between the American Association of Medical Colleges faculty roster and a physician database from Doximity, and includes physician age, sex, years since residency completion, publications, National Institutes of Health grants, and registered clinical trials for all academic physicians by specialty. We used multivariable logistic regression models with medical school–specific fixed effects to assess sex differences in full professorship by specialty and the relationship between these factors and achieving the rank of full professor within ID. We compared this adjusted difference in ID to that of peer subspecialties. Results Among a total of 2016 academic ID physicians, there were 742 (37%) women who together accounted for 48.1% of assistant professors, 39.7% of associate professors, and 19.2% of full professors. Women faculty had fewer total (16.3 vs 28.3, P < .001) and first/last author publications (9.8 vs 20.4, P < .001). In adjusted models, the rate of full professorship (vs assistant or associate) among female compared to male ID physicians was large and significant (absolute adjusted difference, –8.0% [95% confidence interval, –11.9% to –4.1%]). This difference was greater in ID than in cardiology. Conclusions Significant sex differences in achieving the rank of full professor exist in academic ID, after adjustment for multiple factors known to influence these outcomes. Greater efforts should be made to address equity in academic ID.

The Association Between Physician Gender and Career Advancement Among Academic Rheumatologists in the United States

“…The designation of the top 20 US medical schools was identified by US News and World Report in 2013. Prior studies have used this database to study faculty promotion in academic medicine (1,(9)(10)(11), and the data validity for faculty rank, NIH grants, and publications has been previously verified (1). We additionally validated the academic rank of 25 randomly selected rheumatologists.…”

Gender disparities in coronavirus disease 2019 clinical trial leadership

“…The employment gap that occurs when women take parental leave impacts the rate of academic advancement and in turn the receipt of institutional support to apply for and secure funding [ 6 , 7 ]. These imbalances contribute to systemic inequalities that hamper women's access to and progress in science [ 2 , 7 , 8 ]. A review of the gender distribution of 24 COVID-19 national task forces suggests that many committees are comprised of less than a quarter women, indicating that women’s voices and expertise have been excluded from decision making during this unprecedented public health emergency [ 9 ].…”

“…This may indicate a similarly reduced involvement of women in research leadership positions and an imbalanced distribution of grants and funding -- important indicators of advancement in a scientist’s academic career [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 10 , 11 ]. Being principal investigator (PI) on a clinical trial is strongly associated with advancement to full professor among women academics in infectious diseases [ 8 ].…”

Gender disparities in international COVID-19 clinical trial leadership

“…The employment gap that occurs when women take parental leave impacts the rate of academic advancement and in turn the receipt of institutional support to apply for and secure funding [6, 7]. These imbalances contribute to systemic inequalities that hamper women’s access to and progress in science [2, 7, 8]. A review of the gender distribution of 24 COVID-19 national task forces suggests that many committees are comprised of less than a quarter women, indicating that women’s voices and expertise have been excluded from decision making during this unprecedented public health emergency [9].…”

“…This may indicate a similarly reduced involvement of women in research leadership positions and an imbalanced distribution of grants and funding -- important indicators of advancement in a scientist’s academic career [4-7, 10, 11]. Being principal investigator (PI) on a clinical trial is strongly associated with advancement to full professor among women academics in infectious diseases [8].…”