Women in Ophthalmology at Wills Eye Hospital

As part of a review on women in ophthalmology at Wills Eye Hospital (Philadelphia, Pa), I designed a 1-page questionnaire that was sent to 90 female members of the Wills Eye Ex-Residents Society and active members of the hospital staff. Women were given the option to include their name. Information was requested regarding their position(s) and years at Wills and their current professional activities. They were asked to rate their career satisfaction from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very satisfied). In addition, they rated their overall experience at Wills from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent). They were asked whether they had encountered sex discrimination or sexual harassment at Wills and, if so, how much it affected their overall experience (1 = minimal; 5 = very significant). I asked for comments on their association with Wills as well as reflections on being a woman in the field of ophthalmology.

The response rate was 54.4% (49/90). Among the responses, 14.3% (7/49) were anonymous. Most of the respondents were in their 30s (46.9% [23/49]) and 40s (32.6% [16/49]; range, 28-58 years; 3 left age blank). Most women were married (91.8% [45/49]), 2 were divorced, and 2 were single. They had an average of 2 children (range, 0-7; mode = 3). Most of the respondents were very satisfied with their careers in ophthalmology (5 = 63.3% [31/49]; 4 = 30.6% [15/49]; 3 = 6.1% [3/49]). All were practicing ophthalmology except 1 woman, who was a Web site consultant. Most respondents were in private practice (79.6%; 39/49), and half (49%; 24/49) were subspecialists. Almost a third are currently on the Wills staff (28.6%; 14/49), and another 20.4% (10/49) are in academic medicine in other institutions. One woman is a full professor and another one is an associate professor, both at state universities. One respondent is the president of her state academy of ophthalmology. Only a few women were working part-time (12.2% [6/49]).

Respondents were generally very positive about their Wills affiliation, with 81.6% (40/49) rating it excellent (5/5) and the remainder giving it a rating of 4 (scale, 1-5). They included 36 ex-residents, 17 ex-fellows, 22 current or past members of the staff, and 23 women who had held more than 1 of these positions. Most respondents (73.5% [36/49]) had not experienced any sex discrimination or sexual harassment. Approximately half (46.1% [6/13]) of the women who had experienced these problems considered them to have had a minimal (1 on a scale of 1-5) effect on their overall experience at Wills. Three rated the effect as 2 of 5 and commented on subtle discrimination, a perception that women were not regarded as equals and that the quality of their work was not recognized. Two rated the effect as 3 of 5. One respondent thought that Wills was a male-dominated institution. The other woman, who trained more than 20 years ago, mentioned sex discrimination in the interview process, in the sleeping quarters, and in response to pregnancies. Two rated the effect as 4 of 5. One commented anonymously on a preference toward men regarding academic cultivation and promotion, inappropriate advances and comments, and hostility. The other woman experienced discrimination at the Wills Surgery Centers by nonophthalmologists and noted that women were excluded from discussions in the men's locker rooms. Although sex discrimination was infrequent and sexual harassment was described only once, it is important to consider these negative comments seriously.

The open-ended question about respondents' association with Wills and reflections on their ophthalmology careers elicited mostly positive comments. Many noted that their training at Wills had greatly contributed to successful careers after they left. Several stated that the presence of other female residents and successful women on the staff, as well as the positive attitude of the staff in general, contributed to a nurturing environment at Wills. Some believed that more female residents would improve camaraderie and that more female staff members were needed as role models. Some thought that sex discrimination was not an issue at Wills or in their ophthalmology careers, and a couple noted that women were favored. Several respondents commented that ophthalmology was an excellent career choice for women and that it was conducive to family life. One woman who was very satisfied with her career said that she placed her family ahead of career advancement, whereas another woman described difficulty balancing her career with her family and had only moderate (3 of 5) career satisfaction.

I am most appreciative of the time these women spent filling out the questionnaire and of the many thoughtful responses I received.