By fostering connections and addressing systemic biases, female mentors – whether mentoring women or men – can help create a more inclusive, supportive healthcare workforce.
By Vojislava Neskovic, MD, PhD, DEAA, FESAIC, member of WFSA DEI Committee
Despite the growing presence of women in medicine, the concept of the ‘leaky pipeline’ – the gradual decline in the number of women as they progress in their careers – remains prevalent.1 The underrepresentation of women in leadership and academic positions in anaesthesia has been well-documented, but the barriers contributing to this remain unchanged.
The most frequently cited obstacles include family commitments with childbearing being most difficult to overcome, followed by institutional structural flows, implicit bias, sexual harassment, pay gap, and bias in awarding grants and rewards.2
The underrepresentation of women in leadership positions requires effective solutions. Research indicates that promoting female role models and establishing mentorship programmes are effective strategies for inspiring and supporting young women in medical careers.
By providing guidance and visibility, these initiatives help bridge the gender gap and encourage the next generation of women to pursue leadership roles in medicine.
What is the role of a mentor and mentee?
Today, mentoring is an essential component of professional development, as healthcare systems and professional demands are more complex and challenging. The role of mentors is evolving beyond that of a senior authority guiding junior doctors toward academic or professional goals.
Well-trained mentors are now expected to engage in a collaborative learning relationship with their mentees, supporting them in finding solutions to challenges at any stage of their careers3. The process should also be bidirectional, allowing mentors to progress and learn as well.
Ideally, mentoring schemes should consist of trained mentors, informed mentees, and be based on a voluntary arrangement. Research has shown that both mentors and mentees believe personal compatibility to be the most important factor for successful mentorship.4
Ultimately, mentoring fosters personal development, boosts well-being, enhances self-confidence, and improves work relationships, all of which contribute to more cohesive and effective departments.5
Mentorship challenges
In efforts to overcome the gender gap, it is a common assumption that women mentors should be paired with female mentees. The rationale behind this is that shared understanding of barriers, combined with the presence of a mentor as a role model, can empower women and encourage them to pursue careers in leadership and academia.
It has also been recognised that mentoring experiences often differ by gender, often to the disadvantage of women, with concerns that sexual harassment could be particularly problematic and challenging to address. 6
Recent publications on mentoring relationships and gender inequities in academic medicine offer some important insights. When men mentor women, they often become more aware of gender inequities, but rarely address them in a systematic way. Instead, they tend to guide women mentees toward personal solutions for navigating these challenges.
While it may seem logical that female mentors would have a better understanding of gender inequities, they don’t always recognise their personal experiences as part of a broader, systemic issue. Like their male counterparts, women mentors may focus more on guiding their mentees through barriers rather than addressing the underlying systemic biases.
So, although empowering women and increasing their representation in leadership roles is important, it doesn’t necessarily tackle the cultural foundations that allow discrimination and bias to persist. Women mentors could benefit from training and education focused on building effective mentorship relationships that address systemic biases and inequities. Understanding intersectionality is crucial, as career choices and opportunities are influenced not only by gender but also by factors such as race, class, and socioeconomic background.
To point out once more, mentoring is bidirectional process. Mentors, too, gain from these relationships, developing their leadership and coaching skills and rethinking their own career interests and advancement.7 In those terms, women should be encouraged to take on mentoring roles as a means of tackling gender inequities within the workplace.
Benefits of women mentoring men
Pairing mentors and mentees based solely on gender may not always be the most effective or preferred approach. As suggested in the corporate world, when women mentor men, it can foster greater empathy and cooperation.
Women in senior roles who mentor men can help make diverse leadership styles more visible and accepted, while also giving men the opportunity understand their own working styles and the barriers women face in the workplace. In short, it has been suggested that workplace equality improves when women mentor men.
One of the key challenges, however, is the availability of trained and skilled mentors. Specifically, there may be a shortage of women mentors, prompting the question of how to increase their numbers and more effectively address gender equality and representation in anaesthesia.
Ultimately, transforming workplace culture and promoting equality relies on strong female role models who are willing to share their knowledge and experiences as mentors. By nurturing these connections, we all stand to benefit, creating a more inclusive and supportive environment for everyone.
WFSA Global Mentoring Programme
The WFSA Global Mentoring Programme connects anaesthesiologists worldwide, fostering career development, knowledge exchange, and professional support. Open to both early-career and experienced anaesthesiologists, the programme offers mentorships in English, French, and Spanish.
Mentors guide mentees in clinical work, leadership, and career growth, while mentees gain valuable insights, networking opportunities, and governance support. Applications for the next round will open in mid-2025.
Dr Neskovic is the Professor of anaesthesia and intensive care, Clinic for Anesthesia and Intensive care of the Military Medical Academy, Faculty of Medicine MMA, Belgrade, Serbia
Join us in celebrating International Women’s Day on 8th March 2025, by tagging us on social media @WFSAorg and using the hashtag #AccelerateAction.
References
- Bosco L, Lorello GR, Flexman AM, Hastie MJ. Women in anaesthesia: a scoping review. Br J Anaesth. 2020;124(3):e134-e147. doi:10.1016/j.bja.2019.12.021 ↩︎
- Flexman AM, Shillcutt SK, Davies S, Lorello GR. Current status and solutions for gender equity in anaesthesia research. Anaesthesia. 2021 Apr;76 Suppl 4:32-38. doi: 10.1111/anae.15361. ↩︎
- McCrossan R, Swan L, Redfern N. Mentoring for doctors in the UK: what it can do for you, your colleagues, and your patients. BJA Educ. 2020 Dec;20(12):404-410. doi: 10.1016/j.bjae.2020.07.005 ↩︎
- Gisselbaek, M., Marsh, B., Soriano, L. et al. Gender and Race/Ethnicity dynamics in anesthesiology mentorship: results of a European survey. BMC Anesthesiol 24, 311 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12871-024-02692-6 ↩︎
- McCrossan R, Swan L, Redfern N. Mentoring for doctors in the UK: what it can do for you, your colleagues, and your patients. BJA Educ. 2020 Dec;20(12):404-410. doi: 10.1016/j.bjae.2020.07.005 ↩︎
- Murphy M, Record H, Callander JK, Dohan D, Grandis JR. Mentoring Relationships and Gender Inequities in Academic Medicine: Findings From a Multi-Institutional Qualitative Study. Acad Med. 2022 Jan 1;97(1):136-142. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004388. ↩︎
- Burgess A, van Diggele C, Mellis C. Mentorship in the health professions: a review. Clin Teach. 2018 Jun;15(3):197-202. doi: 10.1111/tct.12756. ↩︎
