Poster5 - 03: GENDER DIFFERENCES IN OPERATIVE CASE VOLUME FOR GENERAL SURGICAL RESIDENTS
David S Strosberg, MD, MS, Sherif R Abdel-Misih, MS, Alan E Harzman, MD, Jennifer S Schwartz, MD; The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center

Background:  Despite the increase in female residents in academic surgery programs, the number of females that advance to full professorship and leadership positions remains low.  The percentage of practicing female general surgeons has increased from 3.6% in 1980 to 19.2% in 2015 due to greater numbers of females pursuing surgical residencies.  However, the differences between males and females in training has not been well investigated. The objective of this study was to evaluate the difference in number and type of surgical cases performed by male versus female surgical residents in a single academic institution.

Methods:  Operative case logs from general surgical residents who completed training at a single academic institution from 2011 to 2017 were reviewed. Case logs were accessed from the Accreditation Counsel for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) by the Program Director. Operative data from male and female residents were compared cumulatively and across class years. Fellowship training of males and female residents were compared.

Results:  A total of 39 residents graduated during the study period, with 21 males (53.8%) and 18 females (46.2%). There was no difference in mean total number of cases between male and female residents (1067 versus 1015, p=0.29). Additionally, there was no difference in types of cases performed between male and female residents when total ACGME categories were considered, including breast, skin, soft tissue, and basic laparoscopy.  Finally, all females pursued advanced fellowship compared to 16 males (100% versus 76.1%, p=0.05).

Conclusions: Our study demonstrated that female surgical residents performed equivalently to their male counterparts in number and type of operative cases during their training.  Additionally, we found that while not statistically significant, there was a trend towards females pursuing fellowship training at higher rates than their male counterparts. The lack of advancement of women in academic surgery, despite increasing numbers of women graduating surgical training programs and advanced fellowship training, is likely multi-factorial. Further studies will investigate the role of training factors in the career advancement of women in surgery.