During Women's History Month, it's important to take a look at how gender disparities are impacting nurses.
Despite women making up the majority of the nursing workforce and the broader healthcare workforce, only a few of them go on to fill leadership positions.
According to a 2024 systematic review published in eClinicalMedicine, almost 70% of healthcare workforce around the world is made up of women, and 89% are nurses. However, people identifying as women only fill up 25% of senior leadership roles in the industry. The study found and identifies several barries to entry for women nurses who want to enter leadership.
Here are some of those barriers.
G Hatfield is the CNO editor for HealthLeaders.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Lack of nurse role models, lack of formal and informal training, and inadequate orientation to leadership roles limit women nurses' ability to advance.
Social and cultural expectations, gender bias, heirarchical leadership, and lack of support for work-family integration can impact motivation to enter leadership.
Inequitable systems with cost constraints and bias and acute vs. community care settings limit opportunities to move up.