Professional Preferences and Perceptions of Cardiology Among Internal Medicine Residents

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Abstract
Despite US medical school enrollment being greater than 50% women, only 25% of cardiology fellows were women in 2020, the lowest proportion of all internal medicine (IM) specialty fellowships.1 To better understand career choices, a 2010 survey of IM residents noted that the most commonly sought professional development elements were (in descending order of influence) as follows: stable hours, family friendliness, female friendliness, and positive role models.2 Unfortunately, these components were not reflected in their perceptions of cardiology which were (in descending order) as follows: adverse job conditions, interferes with family life and having children, and lack of diversity. While the disconnect between career preferences and cardiology perceptions held true for both male and female residents, the continued difficulty in attracting women into cardiology fellowships is of particular concern.3-5 The survey was redeployed to explore current IM residents’ career aspiration preferences and perceptions of cardiology and possible changes over time, with the intention of better understanding the continued obstacles to recruiting women into cardiology.6