The potential of women in medicine and science, like those in many other professions, has not been fully realized. When compared with men, women in women and medicinethese fields are paid less, have higher rates of attrition, have fewer scientific publications, and are less likely to apply for NIH funding and to be principal investigators. It is not surprising, therefore, that women are less likely to advance to the highest ranks in academic medicine.
In this issue of JAMA, Jena and colleagues and Sege and colleagues add to the existing literature by providing data from new sources. . . . Jena et al found that in a cohort of more than 90,000 physicians in academic medicine centers, including more than 30,000 women, women were less likely than men to be full professors (11.9% vs 28.6%).