Evaluation of gender bias in thoracic surgery in Türkiye: A descriptive study.

Background: This study aims to investigate the challenges that female thoracic surgeons in Türkiye faced to due to gender bias in their professional lives.

Methods: Between January 2024 and April 2024, a total of 73 female thoracic surgeons (mean age: 37.1±7.4 years; range, 25 to 53 years) who were working in Türkiye and completed a 44-question survey were included. The online questionnaire was sent by email. It was also shared and disseminated in communication groups (WhatsApp).

Results: Of the 73 participants, 45.2% thought that their academic progress was made more difficult due to being women, 49.3% thought that female surgeons were less likely to have influence in their department, and this perception was more prevalent among specialists than among residents (p=0.029). A total of 64.4% of the participants reported being subjected to mobbing in their professional life due to being women. In addition, 56.2% participants thought that they were taken less seriously by patients, as they were women, and this thought was particularly more prevalent among resident physicians (p=0.038). Totally 75.3% of the participants were subjected to verbal or physical violence by patients or their relatives, and 85% thought that the career of female surgeons would be more affected when they had children compared to male surgeons with children. Also, 42.5% of the participants postponed or would postpone pregnancy to a later time.

Conclusion: Our study highlights the urgent need for change by revealing the challenges faced by female thoracic surgeons in Türkiye, including obstacles in training, professional advancement, and achieving a balance between work, children, and family life, all of which are exacerbated by gender bias.