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Equity for women in medicine—neonatologists identify issues

Journal of Perinatology volume 41, pages 435–444 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

Objective

Inequity between genders with regards to leadership achievement, compensation, scholarly productivity, and grant funding exist among physicians. This study explores whether similar inequities exist among board certified neonatologists within the USA.

Study design

A voluntary anonymous survey was distributed to 3575 members of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine with 560 respondents (15.7% response rate). The survey contained questions assessing clinician characteristics, work environment, compensation, professional productivity, and social factors. Statistical analysis was done using JMP Pro 15.0.0 by SAS.

Results

Female neonatologists, compared to male peers, were less likely to hold leadership positions (OR 0.36, p = 0.005), received lower compensation by an average of $34,916 or 12.47% (p < 0.001), and had 6.71 fewer primary authored publications (p = 0.025) after adjusting for several confounding factors.

Conclusion

Gender remains a significant independent factor influencing leadership attainment, compensation, and academic productivity in this cohort of neonatologists.

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Fig. 1: Regression results of factors influencing total cash compensations (2018 US$).

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine for allowing access to its membership to conduct this work. We would also like to thank the members of the Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine for their willing participation. We would also like to thank Boston Children’s Hospital and Duke University Medical Center for their support of this project.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Eric Horowitz

  2. Division of Neonatology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA

    Tara M. Randis

  3. Institutional Centers for Clinical and Translational Research, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Mihail Samnaliev

  4. Department of Pediatrics, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA

    Renate Savich

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Contributions

EH conceptualized and designed the study, designed the data collection instrument, collected data, carried out initial analysis, drafted the initial manuscript, and reviewed and revised the manuscript. MS reviewed the data collection tool, critically reviewed statistical analysis, and critically reviewed the manuscript for important intellectual content. TMR reviewed the data collection tool, and critically reviewed the manuscript for important intellectual content. RS reviewed the data collection tool, and critically reviewed and revised the manuscript. All authors approved the final manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

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Correspondence to Eric Horowitz.

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Horowitz, E., Randis, T.M., Samnaliev, M. et al. Equity for women in medicine—neonatologists identify issues. J Perinatol 41, 435–444 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-020-00897-4

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