Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Otolaryngology Applicants and Residents: Recruiting a Diverse Workforce

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to examine the racial and ethnic representation of otolaryngology applicants and residents and determine if there have been any improvements in recruiting a diverse workforce over the past several years. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on selfreported race and ethnicity data of otolaryngology applicants to United States residency programs from 2016 to 2022 from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and residents from 2011 to 2022 from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). The changes in proportions of applicants and residents by race and ethnicity separately was compared as well as the proportion of applicants to residents. Descriptive analyses and chi-square tests were used to compare proportions of groups by race and ethnicity. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in the proportion of applicants by race or ethnicity from 2016-2017 to 2021-2022. There was a decrease in the proportion of White residents from 58.1% to 54.5% from 2011-2012 to 2018-2019. There were higher proportions of White residents than applicants and lower proportions of Black residents than applicants in the two cycles analyzed . In the most recent cycle analyzed, the proportion of Hispanic or Latino residents was higher than the proportion of Hispanic or Latino applicants. CONCLUSION: While there may be improvements to increase representation of otolaryngology applicants and residents, there continues to be inequalities and a lack of diversity. Further initiatives are needed to ensure diversity in the field improves moving forward. (J Surg Ed 81:543 - 550. (c) 2024 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)