Gender disparity in dermatologic society leadership: A global perspective.

BACKGROUND: In the last half-century, there has been increased representation of women in medicine. Despite this increase, there continues to be underrepresentation of women in medical leadership positions. The objective of this study was to investigate the phenomenon of gender disparity in the leadership of professional societies of dermatology worldwide. METHODS: Online databases were used to extract the names of global dermatologic societies. Individual society websites were accessed to obtain information on executive members. Data not available on society websites were obtained through internet searches. Scopus was used to obtain H-indexes and other bibliometric outcomes. RESULTS: Our data collection spanned 92 countries, with 1733 society leaders identified and information available for 1710. In North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and the Middle East, women were in a minority in dermatology professional society leadership. In South America, Central America, and Africa, women were in a slight majority. Across all professional societies, the role of president was more frequently held by men (n = 95) as opposed to women (n = 75). Female leaders were less likely to hold concurrent academic positions as deans/chairpersons/directors (83.33%) than their male counterparts (92.06%). The median H-index of female leaders (9) was lower than that of men (14). CONCLUSION: Gender disparity exists in leadership positions in professional dermatology societies. Cultural/continental specific factors should be explored further. Enhancement of institutional support, mentorship, and sponsorship for female dermatologists should be encouraged.

Implementation and evaluation of "I-Guide," a pilot near-peer Internal Medicine mentorship program.

An Internal Medicine (IM) specific, near-peer mentorship program was initiated at the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) in 2017. Medical students were paired with IM resident mentors to improve career decision-making through student-oriented discussion topics. Program evaluation was completed using data from three participant cohorts and showed that the program had a positive impact on students' career decision-making. Given the program's flexible nature and ease of implementation, it is well suited for adaptation at other institutions.

Un programme de mentorat par les quasi-pairs spécifique à la médecine interne (MI), a été lancé à l'Université d'Ottawa en 2017. Les étudiants en médecine ont été jumelés avec des mentors résidents en MI afin d'aider les premiers à prendre des décisions concernant leur carrière par le biais de discussions sur des sujets d'intérêt pour eux. L'évaluation du programme, réalisée sur la base des données de trois cohortes de participants, a montré qu'il a eu un impact positif sur la prise de décisions des étudiants à propos de leur carrière. Étant donné la nature souple du programme et sa mise en œuvre facile, il peut être adapté sans difficulté au contexte d'autres établissements.