Iftikhar Sundus, Yasmeen Rahila, Khan Rehan Ahmed, Arooj Mahwish
University College of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Lahore, Lahore, PB, Pakistan.
Islamic International Medical College, Riphah International University, Rawalpindi, PB, Pakistan.
J Healthc Leadersh. 2023 May 31;15:71-82. doi: 10.2147/JHL.S399430. eCollection 2023.
Despite being in high numbers in medical colleges, only a small proportion of women join the workforce and even fewer reach leadership positions in Pakistan. Organizations like United Nations and Women Global Health are working towards closing the gender gap. The study aims to explore the enablers and barriers for women in healthcare leadership and to explore the strategies to promote women in leadership positions in Pakistan's specific societal culture.
In this qualitative exploratory study, semi-structured interviews of 16 women holding leadership positions in the health-care profession, ie, medical and dental (basic or clinical sciences) were included. The data were collected until saturation was achieved. The data were analyzed in MS Excel. Deductive and Inductive thematic analysis was done.
Thirty-eight codes were generated that were combined in the form of categories. The major themes that emerged from the data were: elevating factors, the shackles holding them back, let us bring them up and implicit bias. Elevating factors were intrinsic motivation and exceptional qualifications, while the shackles were related to gender bias, male insecurities, and lack of political background. It was noteworthy that differences in gender roles were highly defined by culture and religion.
There is a need to change the perception of South Asian society and redefine gender roles through media and individual attempts. Women must take charge of their choices and believe in themselves. The institutional policies to help promote gender equality would be mentorship programs for new faculty, gender-responsive training for everyone, equal opportunities for all, and maintaining gender diversity on all committees.
尽管在医学院校中女性数量众多，但在巴基斯坦，只有一小部分女性进入职场，担任领导职位的女性更是少之又少。联合国和全球妇女健康组织等机构正在努力缩小性别差距。本研究旨在探讨女性在医疗保健领域担任领导职位的促进因素和障碍，并探索在巴基斯坦特定社会文化背景下促进女性担任领导职位的策略。
在这项定性探索性研究中，纳入了对16名在医疗保健行业担任领导职位的女性（即医学和牙科领域，基础或临床科学专业）进行的半结构化访谈。数据收集至饱和状态。数据在MS Excel中进行分析。采用了演绎和归纳主题分析法。
共生成了38个编码，并以类别形式进行了合并。从数据中浮现出的主要主题有：提升因素、阻碍她们的枷锁、让我们提升她们以及隐性偏见。提升因素包括内在动力和卓越资质，而枷锁则与性别偏见、男性的不安全感以及缺乏政治背景有关。值得注意的是，性别角色的差异在很大程度上由文化和宗教所界定。
有必要改变南亚社会的观念，并通过媒体和个人努力重新定义性别角色。女性必须掌控自己的选择并相信自己。有助于促进性别平等的制度政策包括为新教员提供指导计划、为所有人提供性别敏感培训、为所有人提供平等机会以及在所有委员会中保持性别多样性。
