Action needed to increase diversity, address race, gender gaps in nephrology
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Key takeaways:
- Female fellows were underrepresented vs. their male peers at a rate of 36.7% vs. 62.9%, respectively.
- Black fellows were underrepresented vs. white and Asian fellows.
SAN DIEGO — Increasing diversity and addressing gender and racial gaps among nephrology fellows requires immediate action, researchers said at ASN Kidney Week.
Chronic kidney disease “remains a major health issue in the United States,” and Black adults “present a significantly increased risk of developing CKD and progression to kidney disease,” Ohm S. Tripathi, of the University of Connecticut, said in a presentation. “However, Black, Hispanic and Native American physicians continue to be underrepresented in the medical field.”
Tripathi and colleagues used data from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education to identify nephrology fellows, classified by self-reported race and gender. The goal was to examine diversity trends among nephrology fellowship trainees from 2014 to 2023 and to assess the influence of COVID-19 on the demographic makeup of trainees.
Researchers defined pre-COVID-19 as 2017 to 2020 and post-COVID as 2020 to 2023.
Female fellows were underrepresented compared with their male peers at a rate of 36.7% vs. 62.9%, respectively. Despite increasing from 35.5% pre-COVID to 38% post-COVID, the representation of women was stagnant, Tripathi and colleagues found, ranging between 39% from 2014 to 2015 to 38.5% from 2022 to 2023.
Black fellows (24.7%) were underrepresented vs. white and Asian fellows. Representation among Black fellows declined from 23.5% from 2014 to 2015 to 11% from 2022 to 2023, the data showed. Representation of Black fellows decreased to 10.2% post-COVID from 23.7% pre-COVID. Meanwhile, representation of Hispanic fellows increased from 6.4% to 10.3% during that period.
“In the field of nephrology, we see that by trying to address all groups the same without acknowledging the existing systemic barriers that these groups may face will only further perpetuate disparities,” Tripathi said. “We must seek to acknowledge and address these barriers as we seek to find change in the field.”
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