S1431 Encouraging Diversity in Transplant Hepatology Fellowship Program Directorship: A Pressing Matter

Introduction: Diversity in medicine has become an important focus due to studies showing the positive effects of race-concordant visits on patient outcomes, adherence, and satisfaction, resulting in more efficient and cost-effective care. While diversity among residency and fellowship program directors has been studied in other fields such as transplant surgery, cardiovascular disease, and psychiatry, little is known about the diversity within niche fellowship programs such as transplant hepatology. This study aims to investigate the demographic information of program directors in transplant hepatology fellowship programs. Methods: We identified transplant hepatology fellowship programs and their program directors from the American College of Gastroenterology website. Multiple reviewers compiled demographic and training information from internet searches, which was collected in Microsoft Excel and analyzed using chi-square analysis. Results: Our study analyzed data from 72 program directors, with 61.11% being male. Among the program directors, 55.6% were non-Hispanic White, 36.11% were Asian, while Hispanics and Blacks represented 5.56% and 4.17%, respectively. Our analysis also found that male program directors were largely non-hispanic white (72.72%) and were significantly more likely to be Professors (P = 0.045). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that transplant hepatology fellowship programs are primarily led by male and non-Hispanic White physicians, with female representation in leadership roles comparable to their membership in the workforce. However, we found a lack of diversity among both male and female underrepresented minorities in program director positions. Our study suggests that transplant hepatology fellowship program leadership lacks gender and racial diversity, with a particular underrepresentation of URM individuals. To attract underrepresented medical students and residents, it is critical to make meaningful efforts to improve diversity and ensure equitable representation of leaders. Future research should focus on identifying barriers to diversity within the field and developing strategies to build a more inclusive workforce while addressing existing leadership inequities (Table 1). Table 1. - Demographic data on all fellowship program directors Characteristic Fellowship Program Directors n = 72 % Credentials Additional Degree or Distinction 20 27.78% PhD 2 2.78% MBA 2 2.78% MPH 4 5.56% MS 7 9.72% FACG* 7 9.72% FAASLD** 12 16.67% Sex Male 44 61.11% Female 28 38.89% Race Non-Hispanic White 39 55.56% Black 3 4.17% Asian 26 36.11% Hispanic 4 5.56% Medical Education IMG*** 16 22.22% Canada 5 6.94% Academic Professor 15 20.83% Associate Professor 27 37.50% Assistant Professor 16 22.22% None 14 19.44% *Fellow of The American College of Gastroenterology. **Fellow of The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. ***International medical graduate.

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