A new study published in JAMA Ophthalmology has examined the change in demographics among United States academic ophthalmology faculty since the 1960s. The study found Black faculty members and other scholars from historically underrepresented backgrounds still remain underrepresented with little progress made over the past 50 years.
The authors examined the demographic data from 221 academic ophthalmologists in 1966 and 3,158 academic ophthalmologists in 2021. The results revealed that although the share of faculty members from underrepresented backgrounds did increase over this time period from 17.2 percent to 41.1 percent, progress was slow at a change of just 0.54 percent per year.
Most notably, the study found increased racial disparities in the demographics of senior-level professorial positions. Scholars from historically marginalized racial backgrounds were more likely to hold lower-ranking positions such as instructors and assistant professors, rather than tenured professor roles. These disparities were especially pronounced among ophthalmology department chairs, where academics from underrepresented backgrounds represented only 21.15 percent of all chairs.
The authors findings confirm the prevalence of racial disparities in medicine and other STEM fields exists among academic ophthalmologists as well. They believe further advocacy and intervention is needed to increase diversity in the field.
