ArticleEClinicalMedicine2021
Advancing women in healthcare leadership: A systematic review and meta-synthesis of multi-sector evidence on organisational interventions.
Article in EClinicalMedicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 91 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
91 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Leadership strategies to foster innovation in healthcare organizations of the UK: a systematic review.BMC health services research · 2026Pooled it
- Barriers and enablers to leadership advancement for women with disabilities: a systematic literature review.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciences · 2026Pooled it
- Leadership training in healthcare: a systematic umbrella review.BMJ leader · 2025Pooled it
- Organisational Strategies for Women Nurses to Advance in Healthcare Leadership: A Systematic Review.Journal of nursing management · 2023Pooled it
- Ensemble RBE Modeling in Proton Therapy: A Meta-Synthesis Framework for Dose Assessment in the Brainstem and Spinal Cord.Cancer control : journal of the Moffitt Cancer CenterPooled it
- Gender disparities in academic radiation oncology research: A narrative review.Clinical and translational radiation oncology · 2027Review
- Driving Implementation-Focused Change for Gender Equity in Medical Leadership: A Consensus-Based Priority-Setting Approach.The Medical journal of Australia · 2026Article
- Advancing Gender Equality in Australian Healthcare Leadership: Why National Targets Matter and What It Means for Healthcare Employers.The Medical journal of Australia · 2026Article
- Women's leadership development programmes and gender equality: a systematic review in healthcare, academia and beyond.EClinicalMedicine · 2026Article
- Measuring the composition and availability of human resources for health by sex in 204 countries and territories, 1990-2023, and workforce gaps for universal health coverage: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2023.The Lancet. Public health · 2026Article
- Implementing systems- and organisational-level change to advance gender equality in healthcare leadership: a mixed-methods implementation protocol.Implementation science communications · 2026Article
- Strengthening women's leadership in health systems through innovation and intersectionality.International journal for equity in health · 2026Article
- Career Advancement Challenges for Women in Tenure Versus Clinical Tracks in Academic Medicine: Cross-Sectional Survey Study.JMIR formative research · 2026Article
- Gender stereotypes about women in pharmacy leadership: evidence from a cross-sectional study in Lebanon.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- "Lead like a woman": strengthening healthcare, medical imaging, and oncology through female leadership.The British journal of radiology · 2026Article
- Understanding gendered experiences in academic health sciences: a grounded theory study on leadership and continuing professional development.Canadian medical education journal · 2026Article
- Mentoring to Support Healthcare Professional and Medical Career Progression and Leadership Development.The Medical journal of Australia · 2026Article
- Activating knowledge-based practice through healthcare leadership development: insights from the second study of a broader action research project.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Interdisciplinary collaborative skill development in a health research training program in Zambia.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Strengthening Leadership Pathways for Women Nurses and Midwives: Examining System and Organizational Opportunities in a Mixed-Methods Study.Journal of nursing management · 2026Article
31 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWomen are underrepresented in healthcare leadership, yet evidence on impactful organisational strategies, practices and policies that advance women's careers are limited. We aimed to explore these across sectors to gain insight into measurably advancing women in leadership in healthcare.
methodsA systematic review was performed across Medline via OVID; Medline in-process and other non-indexed citations via OVID; PsycINFO and SCOPUS from January 2000 to March 2021. Methods are outlined in a published protocol registered
findingsThere were 91 eligible studies from 6 continents with 40 quantitative, 38 qualitative and 13 mixed methods studies. These spanned academia, health, government, sports, hospitality, finance and information technology sectors, with around half of studies in health and academia. Sample size, career stage and outcomes ranged broadly. Potentially effective interventions consistently reported that organisational leadership, commitment and accountability were key drivers of organisational change. Organisational intervention categories included i) organisational processes; ii) awareness and engagement; iii) mentoring and networking; iv) leadership development; and v) support tools. A descriptive meta-synthesis of detailed strategies, policies and practices within these categories was completed.
interpretationThis review provides an evidence base on organisational interventions for advancing women in leadership across diverse settings, with lessons for healthcare. It transcends the focus on the individual to target organisational change, capturing measurable change across intervention categories. This work directly informs a national initiative with international links, to enable women to achieve their career goals in healthcare and moves beyond the focus on barriers to solutions.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.