The Careers and Professional Well-Being of Women Oncologists During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Responding for Tomorrow.

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated gender inequity in medicine, with women physicians reporting greater household responsibilities than their men counterparts and steeper barriers to career advancement. The pandemic highlighted the systemic assumptions and challenges faced by women physicians, which we anticipate is also true in our field of oncology. Prior literature suggests that women physicians were tasked with increased personal and professional responsibilities without compensation for their additional work, as well as derailments in career progression and significant burnout. Our aims are to highlight areas of opportunity to optimize the workplace experience of the oncology workforce and to invest in the professional well-being and sustainability of women oncologists as a step toward global workplace equity and future pandemic preparedness.

Frequency, barriers, outcomes, and consequences of reporting sexual harassment in clinical oncology.

Sexual harassment is increasingly recognized as widely prevalent in medicine. Broad efforts at the organizational and society level are working to address this inequity, but many of these efforts rely on reporting to eradicate problematic behaviors and shift culture. We examined, among oncologists experiencing sexual harassment, the frequency of reporting, as well as barriers, outcomes, and consequences of reporting. Among 271 survey respondents, 217 reported sexual harassment from peers or superiors or from patients or families. Most harassed oncologists (n = 148, 68%) did not report the event to authority because of concerns about future negative consequences for themselves. Among the minority who reported harassment (n = 31, 14%), 52% felt their concerns were not taken seriously and 55% reported no action was taken as a result of their report. Furthermore, 52% experienced retaliatory behavior. Addressing these findings may help to inform the change necessary to create an antiharassment culture in oncology.

Incidence, Nature, and Consequences of Oncologists' Experiences With Sexual Harassment.

PURPOSE: The incidence and impact of workplace sexual harassment (SH) of oncologists requires rigorous characterization. METHODS: Oncologists identified by ASCO's Research Survey Pool and social media outreach completed validated measures of SH (encompassing gender harassment, unwanted sexual attention, and sexual coercion) and four outcomes (mental health, job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and sense of workplace safety) over the previous year. Multivariable regression models assess the impact of SH on the four outcomes. RESULTS: Of 271 cisgender respondents (153 women and 118 men), 189 (70%) experienced SH in the past year alone by peers and/or superiors (80% of women v 56% of men, P < .0001). Specifically, 186 (69%) experienced gender harassment (79% of women, 55% of men, P < .0001), 45 (17%) unwanted sexual attention (22% of women, 9% of men, P = .005), and 7 (3%) sexual coercion (3% of women, 2% of men, P = .42). SH by patients and/or families in the past year was experienced by 143 (53% overall: 67% of women, 35% of men, P < .0001). Specifically, 141 (52%) experienced gender harassment (66% of women, 34% of men, P < .0001), 15 (6%) unwanted sexual attention (5% of women, 6% of men, P = .80), and 3 (1%) sexual coercion (1% of women, 1% of men, P = .72). Multivariable analysis showed that past-year SH by peers and/or superiors was significantly associated with decreased mental health (ß = -0.45, P = .004), sense of workplace safety (ß = -0.98, P < .001), and job satisfaction (ß = -0.69, P = .001), along with increased turnover intentions (ß = 0.93, P < .0001). Past-year SH by patients and/or families was significantly associated with decreased mental health (ß = -0.41, P = .002), sense of workplace safety (ß = -0.42, P = .014), and increased turnover intentions (ß = 0.58, P = .0004). There were no significant interactions between the respondents' gender and the SH scores in any of the four outcome models, signifying no difference in impact between men and women oncologists. CONCLUSION: This study using validated measures of SH to systematically characterize oncologists' workplace experience demonstrates substantial incidence of SH in the previous one year alone and its impact on men and women oncologists, informing the need for and design of effective protective and preventive measures.

Impact of Closed Facebook Group Participation on Female Hematology/Oncology Physicians.

PURPOSE: Meaningful connections are an important aspect of career satisfaction. The Hematology Oncology Women Physician Group (HOWPG) is a private Facebook (FB) group of 936 women who practice within the hematology/oncology (H/O) field. We hypothesized that HOWPG adds value to education, emotional wellness, and practice of oncology for its membership. A survey was conducted within HOWPG to define group impact on members. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A voluntary, anonymous 12-question online survey was distributed to members of HOWPG by sharing the survey link within the FB group. Participants were surveyed regarding demographics, general FB versus exclusive HOWPG use, and opinions regarding HOWPG value and impact. RESULTS: A total of 169 members completed the survey; 9% were fellows, 65% had been in practice less than 10 years, and 26% had been in practice 10 years or more; 97% were age younger than 50 years; 85% practiced adult H/O, and the remainder divided their practice among pediatric H/O, radiation oncology, surgical specialty, and palliative care; 90% used FB at least daily, with 82% accessing HOWPG at least daily. The most common uses for the site included education (65% to 89%), advice on complex cases (65%), emotional support (65%), and networking (55%). On a scale of 1 to 10, learning from clinical cases (9.0) and emotional support (8.4) were rated the most beneficial aspects. Respondents felt HOWPG, when compared with FB in general, was more likely to improve career satisfaction and reduce professional burnout. CONCLUSION: HOWPG provides an opportunity for education and clinical and emotional support. Social media can be an effective venue to educate physicians, augment patient care via advice, foster networking, reduce burnout, and improve career satisfaction among female physicians in the field of H/O.