In 2015, the UEG Board of Directors set up the Equality & Diversity Task Force, a working group of 7 members, headed by a chairperson. The aim of the group is to ensure that all UEG members are offered equal opportunities. Much attention is paid to the role of women in the scientific community dealing with digestive diseases.
The Equality & Diversity Task Force (EDTF) promotes equality in gastroenterology, a discipline in which members of all genders, ages, backgrounds, ethnic groups, skills and experiences work. The group, in particular, supports the aspirations of young people, helping them to become leaders in their field, as well as facilitating more experienced gastroenterologists to share their experience in research, training, and practice. Over the years, the group has organized several events during the UEG Week, such as debates and seminars to discuss topics and practical issues for men and women in gastroenterology.
The issue of gender inequalities is very close to the heart of the EDTF, as can be seen from the topics discussed in recent years: "Top advice from female leaders and their fellows" (2017), "Women as educators" (2018), "Women in interventional endoscopy: are women less attracted by invasive procedures? (2018). During this edition of the UEG Week, a Career Chat entitled "Women in Research" was organized. In addition, the event "Women in GI - Making equality a reality" was organized, with the aim of allowing young people who deal with gastroenterology, physicians and other health professionals, to meet each other and to meet the "older" women who deal with the subject. This event allowed participants to get to know each other, network, explore professional opportunities and establish contacts for future collaborations. This was an excellent opportunity to learn more about the work in the various UEG councils, committees, and expert commissions and to lay the foundations for creating an important network of women in gastroenterology.
The UEG welcomes the fact that more and more women are joining the scientific community of digestive diseases. However, there is still a long way to go to solve the problem of the under-representation of women in the sector. In recent years, the number of women on the boards of directors, committees, and commissions of the UEG, as well as in the organization of the UEG Week, has increased steadily. Last year at the UEG Week in Vienna, 26% of the teachers' members were women, an increase of 3.6% over the previous year. There was a 50% female participation in the classroom courses. However, only two of the 12 EYE Councils and Committees still have more than 50%, female members. Last year international scholarships had a higher number of women beneficiaries (53.8%), but on the contrary, the Rising Star Award showed a female participation rate of only 12.5%. What are the barriers to overcome? To answer this question, the EDTF is currently conducting a survey of women with the main objective of collecting data on obstacles to participation in congresses and obstacles to taking up roles in the boards, committees and working groups of the UEG.
Source:
UEG Equality and Diversity Task Force - making equality a reality. United European Gastroenterol J. 2019 Aug;7(7):985-986. doi: 10.1177/2050640619864878. Epub 2019 Jul 31.