Representation of Women in Internal Medicine Specialties in North America, the United Kingdom, and Australasia: Cardiology's Outlier Status and the Importance of Diversity

Engaging women in decision-making about their heart health: a literature review with patients' perspective

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death globally. Although the burden of CVD risk factors tends to be lower in women, they remain at higher risk of developing complications when affected by these risk factors. There is still a lack of awareness surrounding CVD in women, both from a patient's and a clinician's perspective, especially among visible minorities. However, women who are informed about their heart health and who engage in decision-making with their healthcare providers are more likely to modify their lifestyle, and improve their CVD risk. A patient-centered care approach benefits patients' physical and mental health, and is now considered gold-standard for efficient patient care. Engaging women in their heart health will contribute in closing the gap of healthcare disparities between men and women, arising from sociocultural, socioeconomic, and political factors. This comprehensive review of the literature discusses the importance of engaging women in decision-making surrounding their heart health and offers tools for an effective and culturally sensitive patient-provider relationship.

A Systematic Review of Gender Disparity in the Authorship of Clinical Trials and Clinical Practice Guidelines in Various Medicine Subspecialties

Authorship in clinical trials and clinical practice guidelines is considered prestigious and is associated with broader peer recognition. This systematic review investigated female representation among studies reporting authorship trends in clinical trials or clinical practice guidelines in different medicine subspecialties. Our search strategy yielded 836 articles, of which 30 met the inclusion criteria. Our findings indicate that females are severely underrepresented in authorship of clinical trials and clinical practice guidelines. Although the proportions of females may have improved in the past decade, the gains are marginal. Notably, studies in this domain predominantly focus on first/last authorship positions, and whether females are underrepresented in other positions as collaborative partners is currently unknown. Also, authorship trends in clinical trials or clinical practice guidelines of most medicine subspecialties besides cardiovascular medicine remain under-researched. Hence, standardizing the methodology for studying gender disparity in research output for comparative analysis between different subspecialties is as urgent as addressing the gender disparity in authorship.

Narrowing disparities in PCI outcomes in women; From risk assessment, to referral pathways and outcomes

This review evaluates published data regarding outcomes for women with ACS undergoing PCI. Data is discussed from a patient centred perspective and timeline, beginning with sex-based differences in perception of risk, time to presentation, time to treatment, access to angiography, access to angioplasty, the impact of incomplete revascularization, prescribing practices, under-representation of women in randomized controlled trials and in cardiology physician workforces. The objective of the review is to identify factors contributing to outcome disparities for women with ACS, and to discuss potential solutions to close this outcome gap.