Women in cardiology: critical status and a call to move forward

Abstract

Background: Healthcare workforce should mirror the population in representing patients' diversity; however, in certain medical specialties like cardiology, there is a significant under-representation of females in fellowship programs. There is limited data discussing this issue in the Middle East, and up to our knowledge, no prior literature has cast a light on this subject in Iraq. Main text: Women represent not a minority but rather a negligible proportion of cardiologists in the Middle East, in general, and in Iraq, in particular, as over two decades, recruiting females in cardiology training never progressed. Women are facing many challenges that explain this gender gap, mainly work-life balance and risk of exposure to radiation in addition to society's perceptions in the Middle East that underestimate women in interventional specialties. Conclusions: Serious efforts and forward steps should be taken by decision makers in cardiology fellowship programs and national cardiology societies to bridge this gender gap in order to improve cardiovascular care for both genders regardless of social barriers and traditional customs and to offer more access of care to those female patients who wish to be treated by female doctors based on their personal convictions.

Participation of women in the health workforce in the fragile and conflict-affected countries: a scoping review

“…In addition, females require permission from male family members to access education and employment in some contexts [ 7 , 12 , 15 , 17 ], affecting women’s participation in the health workforce. Thus, women may face difficulty accessing care due to the non-availability of female healthcare providers [ 13 , 14 , 17 ].…”

“…Some studies concur on the critical need for a gender-balanced workforce and increased representation of women at all levels, including decision-making levels, in FCASs [ 1 , 2 , 7 , 14 ]. In most contexts, women’s employment concentrated in low levels and lower-paid professions such as nursing and midwifery compared to men, who dominate the physician workforce [ 7 ].…”

Women physicians in cardiovascular magnetic resonance: Past, present, and future

“…Discrimination occurs across the world and is reported by female cardiologists 62% of the time in the UK, 65% in the US, and 68% worldwide. In the US, this figure has changed little over the past two decades ( 31 , 43 – 45 ). Examples of gender-based discrimination include women not being introduced by their professional titles, patients transferring their care to male colleagues, and an implicit assumption by some men that women are simply not up to the pressures of cardiology with a corresponding loss in career opportunities ( 46 , 47 ).…”

Women's Participation in the Health Workforce in Fragile and Conflict-Affected Countries: Application of a Gender Analysis Framework

“…This is because, in part, FCASs experience pressure due to the eeing of health care professionals and security issues for women (20,21). On the other hand, socio-cultural norms in some FCASs dictate that women receive care only from female healthcare providers (22)(23)(24). Simultaneously, the postcon ict period provides a window of opportunity to transform gender relations (11,25,26) due to renewed political will (25) and availability of resources (25,26), which might have the potentials to in uence women's participation in the workforce.…”