The Relationship Between Surgeon Gender and Stress During the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Journal
Annals of surgery
ISSN: 1528-1140
Titre abrégé: Ann Surg
Pays: United States
ID NLM: 0372354
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
01 04 2021
01 04 2021
Historique:
pubmed:
26
1
2021
medline:
26
3
2021
entrez:
25
1
2021
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
To investigate the relationship between surgeon gender and stress during the Covid-19 pandemic. Although female surgeons face difficulties integrating work and home in the best of times, the Covid-19 pandemic has presented new challenges. The implications for the female surgical workforce are unknown. This cross-sectional, multi-center telephone survey study of surgeons was conducted across 5 academic institutions (May 15-June 5, 2020). The primary outcome was maximum stress level, measured using the validated Stress Numerical Rating Scale-11. Mixed-effects generalized linear models were used to estimate the relationship between surgeon stress level and gender. Of 529 surgeons contacted, 337 surgeons responded and 335 surveys were complete (response rate 63.7%). The majority of female respondents were housestaff (58.1%), and the majority of male respondents were faculty (56.8%) (P = 0.008). A greater proportion of male surgeons (50.3%) than female surgeons (36.8%) had children ≤18 years (P = 0.015). The mean maximum stress level for female surgeons was 7.51 (SD 1.49) and for male surgeons was 6.71 (SD 2.15) (P < 0.001). After adjusting for the presence of children and training status, female gender was associated with a significantly higher maximum stress level (P < 0.001). Our findings that women experienced more stress than men during the Covid-19 pandemic, regardless of parental status, suggest that there is more to the gendered differences in the stress experience of the pandemic than the added demands of childcare. Deliberate interventions are needed to promote and support the female surgical workforce during the pandemic.
Sections du résumé
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the relationship between surgeon gender and stress during the Covid-19 pandemic.
BACKGROUND
Although female surgeons face difficulties integrating work and home in the best of times, the Covid-19 pandemic has presented new challenges. The implications for the female surgical workforce are unknown.
METHODS
This cross-sectional, multi-center telephone survey study of surgeons was conducted across 5 academic institutions (May 15-June 5, 2020). The primary outcome was maximum stress level, measured using the validated Stress Numerical Rating Scale-11. Mixed-effects generalized linear models were used to estimate the relationship between surgeon stress level and gender.
RESULTS
Of 529 surgeons contacted, 337 surgeons responded and 335 surveys were complete (response rate 63.7%). The majority of female respondents were housestaff (58.1%), and the majority of male respondents were faculty (56.8%) (P = 0.008). A greater proportion of male surgeons (50.3%) than female surgeons (36.8%) had children ≤18 years (P = 0.015). The mean maximum stress level for female surgeons was 7.51 (SD 1.49) and for male surgeons was 6.71 (SD 2.15) (P < 0.001). After adjusting for the presence of children and training status, female gender was associated with a significantly higher maximum stress level (P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
Our findings that women experienced more stress than men during the Covid-19 pandemic, regardless of parental status, suggest that there is more to the gendered differences in the stress experience of the pandemic than the added demands of childcare. Deliberate interventions are needed to promote and support the female surgical workforce during the pandemic.
Identifiants
pubmed: 33491977
doi: 10.1097/SLA.0000000000004762
pii: 00000658-202104000-00003
pmc: PMC7959864
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Multicenter Study
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
625-629Commentaires et corrections
Type : CommentIn
Type : CommentIn
Informations de copyright
Copyright © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.
Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts
The authors declare no conflict of interests.
Références
Sonnad SS, Colletti LM. Issues in the recruitment and success of women in academic surgery. Surgery 2002; 132:415–419.
Colletti LM, Mulholland MW, Sonnad SS. Perceived obstacles to career success for women in academic surgery. Arch Surg 2000; 135:972–977.
Ranney ML, Griffeth V, Jha AK. Critical supply shortages—the need for ventilators and personal protective equipment during the Covid-19 pandemic. N Engl J Med 2020; 382:e41.
Sasangohar F, Jones SL, Masud FN, et al. Provider burnout and fatigue during the COVID-19 pandemic: lessons learned from a high-volume intensive care unit. Anesth Analg 2020; 131:106–111.
Bayham J, Fenichel EP. Impact of school closures for COVID-19 on the US health-care workforce and net mortality: a modelling study. Lancet Public Health 2020; 5:e271–e278.
Elsevier, Hakim AA, Kellish AS, Atabek U, et al. Implications for the Use of Telehealth in Surgical Patients During the COVID-19 Pandemic. 2020.
Brindle ME, Gawande A. Managing COVID-19 in surgical systems. Ann Surg 2020; 272:e1–e2.
National Bureau of Economic Research, Alon TM, Doepke M, Olmstead-Rumsey J, et al. The Impact of COVID-19 on Gender Equality. 2020; 898–2937.
Collins C, Landivar LC, Ruppanner L, et al. COVID-19 and the gender gap in work hours. Gender Work & Organization 2020; Epub ahead of print.
Gostin L O, Wiley L F. Governmental public health powers during the COVID-19 pandemic: stay-at-home orders, business closures, and travel restrictions. JAMA 2020; 323:2137–2138.
Martin CI, Moverman MA, Menendez ME. The essential business conundrum in COVID-19 hotspots. J Natl Med Assoc 2020; 112:619–620.
The New York Times, Cohen P, Hsu T. Economic Strain Grows, Hitting Working Mothers. 2020.
Viglione G. Are Women Publishing Less During the Pandemic? Here's What the Data Say. Building, 4 Crinan St, London N1 9XW, England: Nature Publishing Group Macmillan; 2020.
Kibbe MR. Consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on manuscript submissions by women. JAMA Surg 2020; 155:803–804.
McLaren HJ, Wong KR, Nguyen KN, et al. Covid-19 and women's triple burden: vignettes from Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Vietnam and Australia. Social Sci 2020; 9:87.
Mavroudis CL, Landau S, Brooks E, et al. Exploring the experience of the surgical workforce during the Covid-19 pandemic. Annals of Surgery. 2020. Epub ahead of print.
Karvounides D, Simpson PM, Davies WH, et al. Three studies supporting the initial validation of the stress numerical rating scale-11 (stress NRS-11): a single item measure of momentary stress for adolescents and adults. Pediatric Dimensions 2016; 1:105–109.
Harris PA, Taylor R, Minor BL, et al. The REDCap consortium: building an international community of software platform partners. J Biomed Inform 2019; 95:103208.
Harris PA, Taylor R, Thielke R, et al. Research electronic data capture (REDCap)—a metadata-driven methodology and workflow process for providing translational research informatics support. J Biomed Inform 2009; 42:377–381.
StataCorp. 2017. Stata Statistical Software: Release 15. College Station, TX: StataCorp LLC.
Carlson DL, Petts R, Pepin J. US couples’ divisions of housework and childcare during COVID-19 pandemic [Preprint] 2020.
MacDonald M, Phipps S, Lethbridge L. Taking its toll: the influence of paid and unpaid work on women's well-being. Feminist Econ 2005; 11:63–94.
Bergman B, Ahmad F, Stewart D. Work family balance, stress, and salivary cortisol in men and women academic physicians. Int J Behav Med 2008; 15:54–61.
Usher K, Bhullar N, Jackson D. Life in the pandemic: social isolation and mental health. J Clin Nurs 2020; 29:2756–2757.
Knox SS, Uvnäs-Moberg K. Social isolation and cardiovascular disease: an atherosclerotic pathway? Psychoneuroendocrinology 1998; 23:877–890.
Leigh-Hunt N, Bagguley D, Bash K, et al. An overview of systematic reviews on the public health consequences of social isolation and loneliness. Public Health 2017; 152:157–171.
Steptoe A, Owen N, Kunz-Ebrecht SR, et al. Loneliness and neuroendocrine, cardiovascular, and inflammatory stress responses in middle-aged men and women. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2004; 29:593–611.
Thurston RC, Kubzansky LD. Women, loneliness, and incident coronary heart disease. Psychosom Med 2009; 71:836–842.
Baptiste D, Fecher AM, Dolejs SC, et al. Gender differences in academic surgery, work-life balance, and satisfaction. J Surg Res 2017; 218:99–107.
Abelson JS, Chartrand G, Moo T-A, et al. The climb to break the glass ceiling in surgery: trends in women progressing from medical school to surgical training and academic leadership from 1994 to 2015. Am J Surg 2016; 212:566–572.e1.
Jonasson O. Leaders in American surgery: where are the women? Surgery 2002; 131:672–675.
Matud MP. Gender differences in stress and coping styles. Personality and Individual Differences 2004; 37:1401–1415.
Anderson KM, Manuel G. Gender differences in reported stress response to the Loma Prieta earthquake. Sex Roles 1994; 30:725–733.