Changing the balance between personal and professional life among female gynecologic oncologists: 1998 versus 2015

Objectives: To describe changes in mentoring and work-life issues faced by female gynecologic oncologists between the years 1998 and 2015. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of female and male gynecologic oncology physician members of the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO). A survey originally sent to female gynecologic oncologists in 1998 was expanded, piloted in 10 volunteers, and administered in electronic format (DatStat Illume) in February 2015. Our revised instrument contained 75 fixed response questions regarding 4 domains including: (1) demographics; (2) mentoring issues; (3) work-life balance; and (4) caregiving responsibilities. We compared our survey responses to the previous 1998 raw survey data. Data were analyzed using Stata 10 (Statacorp, College Station, TX) with χ2 analysis and Fisher exact test using aggregate data functions. Results: A total of 268 gynecologic oncologists completed our survey (response rate 21.5%). Of these, 172 (64%) were women and are included in this analysis. The historical comparison group included 81 female respondents who completed the 1998 survey (response rate 57%). The mean age of survey respondents did not differ between groups (39 vs 40, P = .4). No difference was found between the proportion of respondents in academic practice, private practice, and fellowship, with the majority being in academic practice (55%) (P > .05). More women reported having a female mentor in 2015 compared with 1998 (59% vs 35%, P < .0001); however, 30% of female respondents in 2015 did not feel that the mentor’s gender was important compared with 6% in 1998 (P < .0001). In work-life balance issues, more women in 2015 reported starting a family during residency/fellowship training compared with 1998 (58% vs 36%, P < .009). Overall, women reported taking longer maternity leave (7–12 weeks) in 2015 compared with 1998 (46% vs 16%, P < .0001). An increased proportion of women reported that their spouses were the primary caregivers in 2015 compared with 1998 (59% vs 12%, P < .0001). Conclusions: The trends in mentoring, work-life balance, and caregiving responsibilities have changed significantly for female gynecologic oncologists between 1998 and 2015.