A Comparison of Applicant and Resident Physician Demographics Among Surgical Subspecialties From 2009 to 2019: Trends in Gender and Underrepresented Minorities in Medicine

• Published in: Annals of plastic surgery Vol. 88; no. 4; p. 451
• Main Authors: Jain, Abhishek, Nichols, Georgina, Tarabishy, Sami, Scomacao, Isis, Herrera, Fernando A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.04.2022
• Subjects: Demography; Education, Medical, Graduate; Female; Humans; Internship and Residency; Minority Groups; Physicians; United States; United States
• ISSN: 1536-3708
• DOI: 10.1097/SAP.0000000000003041

The purposes of this study were to compare applicant statistics to resident physician demographics among several surgical subspecialties (SSSs), to identify trends of gender and underrepresented minorities in medicine (UIM), and to evaluate current diversity among these specialties. Graduate medical education reports from 2009 to 2019 were queried to determine trends among programs. Further identification of gender and UIM statistics was obtained in 4 several SSSs: integrated plastic surgery, orthopedic surgery (OS), otolaryngology surgery (ENT), and neurosurgery (NS). These were compared with Association of American Medical Colleges data of residency applicants for the respective years. Significant differences were seen among gender and UIM(s) of the applicant pool when compared with resident data. All specialties had significantly fewer American Indian and African American residents compared with applicants. Significant differences between applicants and residents were also found among Hispanic, Native Hawaiian, and female demographics. All SSSs had a significant positive trend for the percentage of female residents. Significant differences between specialties were identified among African American, Hispanic, and female residents. Orthopedic surgery and NS had significantly higher percentage of African American residents compared with ENT and integrated plastic surgery. Neurosurgery had significantly higher percentage of Hispanic residents compared with OS and ENT. Integrated plastic surgery and ENT had significantly higher percentage of female residents compared with OS and NS. There has been significant increase in number of residency programs and resident positions since 2009. However, increase in female residents and UIM(s) among SSSs has not matched the pace of growth.