Is lecturing in Rheumatology Satellite Symposia a male attribute?

Gender biases in Spanish rheumatology: Perception and facts

OBJECTIVE

To identify perceptions of gender bias in Spanish rheumatology and to quantify the involvement of both sexes in all areas of the specialty.

METHODS

A survey was sent to all members of the SER on participation and perception of biases and of their own competencies, and actual data on participation in governing bodies, congresses, committees, and Spanish rheumatology departments in the last 5 years were reviewed.

RESULTS

The survey was answered by 95 rheumatologists, 4.8% of SER members (14 men and 81 women), both groups being similar in terms of age, academic level, and position and work centre. No differences were detected in the distribution of work and non-work tasks between sexes, nor in invitations to positions of power in the last five years, nor in the perception of capacity to occupy the different positions of power, which was high for both sexes. Male respondents more frequently consider that activities such as participating in a scientific committee or giving a conference are not empowering. A third of both sexes consider that the SER should review its processes with a gender perspective but less than a third believe that this should be done by quotas. The reality of the last 5 years is that 1) there is a male to female ratio of 3:2 on SER boards of directors and in this period there has been no female president or treasurer; 2) in the scientific committees of the congresses men predominate (2:1) although slightly less in the local organizing committee; 3) there are more male speakers and moderators than women (very striking in satellite symposia, 4: 1); 4) 9 out of 10 editors-in-chief are men; 5) in academic positions there are 3 men for every 2 women, 9 to 1 in professorships or emeritus positions; although more women supervise residents; and 6) there are more women (60%) than men (40%) in Spanish rheumatology departments, although 75% of department chiefs are men.

CONCLUSION

Although not perceived by either the men or the women, there are biases in the involvement of women in important and leadership positions in the specialty.

Gender parity perspectives in Asia Pacific: a descriptive analysis of Philippine rheumatology conferences

Gender parity at conferences can facilitate progress in academia towards the attainment of gender equality as emphasized in the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. The Philippines is a low to middle-income country in the Asia Pacific with relatively egalitarian gender norms experiencing significant growth in rheumatology. We examined the Philippines as a case study to analyze the impact of divergent gender norms on gender equity in rheumatology conference participation. We used publicly available data from PRA conference materials from 2009 to 2021. Gender was identified from information provided by organizers, online science directory networks, and a name-to-gender inference platform, the Gender application program interface (API). International speakers were identified separately. The results were then compared to other rheumatology conferences around the world. The PRA had 47% female faculty. Women were more likely to be the first authors in abstracts at the PRA (68%). There were more females among new inductees in PRA with the male: female ratio (M:F) of 1:3. The gender gap among new members declined from 5:1 to 2.7:1 from 2010 to 2015. However, low female representation was observed among international faculty (16%). Gender parity at the PRA was found to be considerably better when compared to other rheumatology conferences in the USA, Mexico, India, and Europe. However, a wide gender gap persisted among international speakers. Cultural and social constructs may potentially contribute to gender equity in academic conferences. Further research is recommended to assess the impact of gender norms on gender parity in academia in other Asia-Pacific countries.

The Speaker Gender Gap at Critical Care Conferences

OBJECTIVES

To review women's participation as faculty at five critical care conferences over 7 years.

DESIGN

Retrospective analysis of five scientific programs to identify the proportion of females and each speaker's profession based on conference conveners, program documents, or internet research.

SETTING

Three international (European Society of Intensive Care Medicine, International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine, Society of Critical Care Medicine) and two national (Critical Care Canada Forum, U.K. Intensive Care Society State of the Art Meeting) annual critical care conferences held between 2010 and 2016.

SUBJECTS

Female faculty speakers.

INTERVENTIONS

None.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

Male speakers outnumbered female speakers at all five conferences, in all 7 years. Overall, women represented 5-31% of speakers, and female physicians represented 5-26% of speakers. Nursing and allied health professional faculty represented 0-25% of speakers; in general, more than 50% of allied health professionals were women. Over the 7 years, Society of Critical Care Medicine had the highest representation of female (27% overall) and nursing/allied health professional (16-25%) speakers; notably, male physicians substantially outnumbered female physicians in all years (62-70% vs 10-19%, respectively). Women's representation on conference program committees ranged from 0% to 40%, with Society of Critical Care Medicine having the highest representation of women (26-40%). The female proportions of speakers, physician speakers, and program committee members increased significantly over time at the Society of Critical Care Medicine and U.K. Intensive Care Society State of the Art Meeting conferences (p < 0.05), but there was no temporal change at the other three conferences.

CONCLUSIONS

There is a speaker gender gap at critical care conferences, with male faculty outnumbering female faculty. This gap is more marked among physician speakers than those speakers representing nursing and allied health professionals. Several organizational strategies can address this gender gap.