What Does the Career of a Woman Surgical Chair Look Like? Academic and Professional Profiles of Women in Surgical Leadership

Historically, women in surgery have faced systemic barriers to becoming physicians, including cultural expectations that discourage leadership roles. This study provides a descriptive analysis of the educational, professional, and academic profiles of women serving as surgical chairs in the United States, with the goal of offering insight to support current and future surgical trainees.

Supplementary data, including educational history, professional achievements, and publication metrics, were collected from public resources such as institutional websites, LinkedIn, and Doximity.

On average, women surgical chairs reached their positions 18.5 years after completing residency. Most (96%, 22/23) pursued fellowship training across 13 specialties, with surgical oncology being the most common (26.1%, 6/23). Nearly half (47%, 11/23) earned an additional advanced degree, including MS, MBA, or MPH qualifications. Before their appointment as Chair of the Department of Surgery, these women spent an average of 8.1 years at their institution. Their academic contributions were notable, with a mean of 208 publications, 11,428 citations, an H-index of 56.7, and an i-10 index of 151.6.

Despite ongoing strides toward gender equity in surgery, significant barriers to leadership for women remain. This study aims to illuminate the pathways taken by current women leaders, providing a framework to inspire and guide future generations of women surgeons toward leadership roles.