Otolaryngology Department and Society Leadership: Evaluation of Diversity in a Nationwide Study

Abstract

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Diversity in medicine positively influences healthcare delivery. As we aim to make otolaryngology more diverse, it is essential to analyze our current leadership. STUDY DESIGN: Observational study. METHODS: A total of 262 department chairs and chiefs, residency program directors, and assistant and associate directors from 117 otolaryngology residency programs as well as 92 society leaders from nine otolaryngology national societies from 2010 to 2020 in the United States are included in this study. The position, academic rank, name, gender, inferred race (based on name and image), and h-index are collected and recorded from publicly available data. Fisher's exact test, unpaired t tests, and analysis of variance tests are used. RESULTS: The ethno-racial breakdown of all otolaryngology residency leaders is as follows: 78.63% non-Hispanic (NH) White, 16.03% NH Asian, 2.29% Middle Eastern, 1.91% NH Black, and 1.15% Latinx. Male gender is found to be a predictor of full professorship title (P < .0001) with an odds ratio (OR) of 4.066. NH White male is also a predictor of full professorship (P < .0001) with an OR 3.05. When comparing h-index, males and females differ (P < .0001) across all residency leadership positions. There is a higher h-index among full professors compared to non-full professors (P < .0001). The ethno-racial breakdown of society leaders is 84% NH White, 11% NH Asian, 2% NH Black, 2% Latinx, and 1% Middle Eastern. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, otolaryngology leadership has an under-representation of women and certain ethno-racial groups. Continued efforts should be made to diversify our specialty's leadership. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: NA Laryngoscope, 132:1729-1737, 2022.