Gender distribution and women leadership in German Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery

Abstract Objective To determine the distribution of female physicians throughout the rank from resident to leadership positions in German Otolaryngology‐Head and Neck Surgery (OHNS) departments. Methods This cross‐sectional study collected data about the physician workforce in the German OHNS. The primary outcome was the proportion of female physicians. Data were collected from 165 departments from January 2022 to February 2022. The physician workforce was stratified based on gender and leadership. Results We included 2089 physicians from 165 departments of OHNS in German hospitals. Female residents and specialists outnumbered male peers (484/872 [55.5%] vs. 388/872 [44.5%] and 224/363 [61.71%] vs. 139/363 [38.29%], respectively). However, the women proportion decreased gradually with elevated hierarchical rank starting at the attending physician level to reaching its lowest extreme (14/165 [7.23%]) at the head of the department level. Holding a leadership position was associated with being male (n = 282 [85.2%] vs. n = 49 [14.8%], p