Disparity in Leadership in Neurosurgical Societies: A Global Breakdown

OBJECTIVE: Gender disparity in academic and organizational settings has been the topic of numerous studies and they have tried to extract its causes using H-index as the prime metric. The primary objective of our study was to assess gender disparity in leadership positions in neurosurgical societies worldwide. A second objective was to evaluate scholarly output among neurosurgeons in neurosurgical societies worldwide, utilizing H-index as a predominant metric. METHODS: The World Federation of Neurosurgeons database was used to gather details on the neurosurgical societies present worldwide. Online data present for leadership positions were extracted from each of the respective societies. Neurosurgeons holding leadership positions were arranged according to their academic and hierarchical ranks. The Scopus database was used to calculate H-index along with other bibliometric variables. RESULTS: H-index was statistically significant between both genders, with male neurosurgeons having significantly higher H-index than female neurosurgeons. A positive correlation was also found between H-index and academic ranks of neurosurgeons. However, no statistical significance was found between H-index and executive committee positions. Female neurosurgeons held 29% executive committee positions globally. CONCLUSIONS: A paucity of female neurosurgeons was seen in leadership positions in neurosurgical societies worldwide. Significant disparity present in research productivity between genders is a highlighted statistic further discussed in this study, considering variables such as H-index among others. The increase in female neurosurgeons to neurosurgical organizational echelons can be achieved by enhancing institutionalized support, setting up networking platforms, and identifying mentorship opportunities for prospective leaders.