Racial and Ethnical Diversity Within the Neurosurgery Resident and Faculty Workforce in the United States

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Promoting workplace diversity leads to a variety of benefits related to a broader range of perspectives and insights. Underrepresented in medicine (URiM), including African Americans, Latinx, and Natives (Americans/Alaskan/Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders), are currently accounting for approximately 40% of the US population. OBJECTIVE: To establish a snapshot of current URiM representation within academic neurosurgery (NS) programs and trends within NS residency. METHODS: All 115 NS residencies and academic programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education in 2020 were included in this study. The National Residency Matching Program database was reviewed from 2011 to 2020 to analyze URiM representation trends over time within the NS resident workforce. The academic rank, academic and clinical title(s), subspecialty, sex, and race of URiM NS faculty (NSF) were obtained from publicly available data. RESULTS: The Black and Latinx NS resident workforce currently accounts for 4.8% and 5.8% of the total workforce, respectively. URiM NSF are present in 71% of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited NS programs and account for 8% (148 of 1776) of the workforce. Black and Latinx women comprise 10% of URiM NSF. Latinx NSFs are the majority within the URiM cohort for both men and women. URiM comprise 5% of all department chairs. All are men. Spine (26%), tumor (26%), and trauma (17%) were the top 3 subspecialties among URiM NSF. CONCLUSION: NS has evolved, expanded, and diversified in numerous directions, including race and gender representation. Our data show that ample opportunities remain to improve URiM representation within NS.

Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Neurosurgery: Challenges, Progress, and Future Directions

“…27,28 In a cyclical effect, the absence of a critical mass of URiM neurosurgeons in academic medicine may also serve as a deterrent to URiM medical students deciding whether to pursue careers in neurosurgery. 15,29 This is supported by studies that demonstrate that URiM medical students are more likely to lose interest in the surgical subspecialties between matriculation and graduation. 30…”

“…15 One third of neurosurgery programs in the United States do not have a single faculty member who are from an URiM group. 15 A diverse workforce is essential for us to reach our potential across all our missions and provide better care for patients from all communities. Thus, increasing racial diversity in neurosurgery should be one of the top priorities in our field.…”

“…14 The immediate pipeline does not appear particularly promising because only 5% of neurosurgery residents are Black and 7% are Latinx. 15 One third of neurosurgery programs in the United States do not have a single faculty member who are from an URiM group. 15 A diverse workforce is essential for us to reach our potential across all our missions and provide better care for patients from all communities.…”

Disparities in Access to Deep Brain Stimulation for Parkinson’s Disease and Proposed Interventions: A Literature Review

“…Notably, organizational and policy adaptations should increase diversity not just of committees within national and international societies but also of PD and DBS providers. There are significant gender and racial disparities within the fields of both academic neurology [109,110] and academic neurosurgery [111], with these disparities especially pronounced in neurosurgery. Previously proposed organizational interventions to increase diverse representation include targeted effort toward recruitment of racial minorities to neurosurgery and in leadership positions [112], enforcement of parental leave policies [112], and compensation equity [113].…”

Seventy-five years of neurosurgery residency training at The Mount Sinai Hospital

“…32 Another study, "Racial and ethnical diversity within the neurosurgery resident and faculty workforce in the United States," was conducted by several Mount Sinai medical students and residents, with Dr. Germano as senior author, and focused on identifying trends in racial and ethnic diversity. 33 "Academic productivity of United States neurosurgeons trained abroad" is a study that examined the academic productivity of neurosurgeons with international medical or residency training. 34 It was led by Mount Sinai medical students and residents, with Dr. Tanvir Choudhri as senior author.…”