Female and underrepresented minority representation in radiology

Rational and objective

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and representation in various sectors have garnered increasing attention in the past two decades, including healthcare. In this report we investigate representation of females and underrepresented minorities (URM) in the field of radiology and asses for significant growth trends in representation in residency training programs in the United States.

Materials and methods

De-identified trainee demographic information for active radiology trainees from 2016 to 2021 was queried using the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), and new radiology trainees using the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP)’s Main Residency Match Data and Reports databooks.

Results

In 2021 females represented 26.7% of DR residency trainees and 22% of IR integrated trainees. In the same year URM trainees represented 11.3% of trainees and 8.7% of IR integrated trainees. From 2017 to 2021, diagnostic radiology had a compound average growth rate (CAGR) 1% (p <0.01) of female representation and 1.12% (p<0.01) of URM representation.

Conclusion

This study quantifies female and underrepresented minority representation among radiology trainees for diagnostic radiology and radiology subspecialities, identifying modest uptrends in representation within both demographics.