Why do women reject surgical careers?

The objective of this study was to identify some of the reasons why women r eject surgical careers, and to suggest actions which might reverse that tre nd. The subjects were new entrants to medical school, third-year medical st udents and pre-registration house officers (PRHOs) at the Medical School of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Method: A cross-sectional descriptive survey, using a self-administered questionnaire. Results: Of 247 females surveyed, 99 (40% ) had rejected surgical careers, mainly because of 'personal preference'. W omen saw such careers as unfavourable to them, largely because of a percept ion of male bias. No more than 10% of females in each subject group had sur gical role-models, The perceived quality of teaching and friendliness of co nsultants had a significant influence on career decisions, Conclusions: Wom en reject surgical careers because of perceptions of 'male bias' and 'negat ive attitudes'. An increase In the number of surgical role models among wom en could improve this situation, as could apparent enthusiasm for teaching and enjoyment of their specialty by consultants.