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Professional and Personal Development

(144) Diversity in Otolaryngology: An Update on URM Applicants and Matriculants

Monday, October 2, 2023
2:45 PM – 3:45 PM East Coast USA Time
Has Audio

    Presenting Author(s)

  • Lauran K. Evans, MD, MPH

    Resident Physician
    UCLA Medical Center
    Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

    • Co-Author(s)

  • EW

    Emily C. Wong, MD

    Resident Physician
    UCLA Medical Center
    Los Angeles, CA, United States

  • KB

    Krishna Bommakanti, MD

    Resident Physician
    UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, Department of Head & Neck Surgery, United States

  • SS

    Sarah Requa Sutton, BS

    Medical Student
    Medical University of South Carolina
    Reno, Nevada, United States

    • Senior Author(s)

  • Maie A. St. John, MD, PhD

    Professor and Chair
    Professor and Chair of the Department of Head & Neck Surgery at UCLA; Thomas C. Calcaterra, MD, Chair in Head and Neck Surgery
    Los Angeles, CA, United States

Disclosure(s):
Lauran K. Evans, MD, MPH: No relevant relationships to disclose.
Lauran Evans, MD: No relevant relationships to disclose.
Sarah Requa Sutton, BS: No relevant relationships to disclose.
Maie A. St. John, MD, PhD: No relevant relationships to disclose.


Introduction: Underrepresented minority (URM) medical students make up 13.4% of the U.S. medical student population despite comprising 33.4% of the U.S. population. There are few reports in the literature diversity amongst otolaryngology (oto) faculty and trainees at academic medical centers.

Methods: Databases from the Association of American Medical colleges and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (2016-2021) were queried on demographics of applicants to residency programs, residents, and faculty at U.S. academic medical centers. Odds ratios were calculated; statistical tests were performed via RStudio v1.4.1.

Results: Female oto applicants, residents, and faculty represented 37.4, 39.3, and 37.0% of these groups respectively. Male oto faculty are noted to have 1.5x odds to become assistant professor (CI 1.2-1.7); 1.6x odds to become associate professor (CI 1.3-1.9); 3.4x increased odds to become full professor (CI 2.66-4.24); and 8.9x odds to become chair (CI 4.1-19.3) vs. their female colleagues.

Black and Hispanic oto applicants (4.1, 5.7%), residents (2.5, 4.4%), and assistant professors (2.4, 3.0%), associate professors (2.1, 2.3%), and professors (2.1, 3.6%) are underrepresented in comparison to the number of medical students (7.0, 6.6%) in the pipeline.

Upon review of the demographics of oto full professors: White females represent 11.9%, Asian females 3.4%, Latino females 0.6%, Black females 0.6%, Asian males 13.6%, Latino males 3%, and Black males 1.1%. White male representation increases through the faculty tenure track: assistant professor (41.3%), associate professor (48.8%), and professor (66.1%).

Conclusions: This is the first comprehensive study to examine diversity in the academic oto pipeline. While URM medical students continue to represent a small proportion of the applicant pool, they continue to have similar representation in oto residency programs. URM disparities manifest most acutely across rank at academic medical centers. Further diversity initiatives should include recruitment and complementary support systems of diverse students, residents and faculty.