PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Rose Penfold
AU  - Katie Knight
AU  - Nada Al-Hadithy
AU  - Lucia Magee
AU  - Greta McLachlan
TI  - Women speakers in healthcare: speaking up for balanced gender representation
AID  - 10.7861/fhj.2019-0027
DP  - 2019 Oct 01
TA  - Future Healthcare Journal
PG  - 167--171
VI  - 6
IP  - 3
4099  - http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/6/3/167.short
4100  - http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/6/3/167.full
SO  - Future Healthc J2019 Oct 01; 6
AB  - Women comprise the majority of the UK’s health and social care workforce, yet remain underrepresented in senior leadership positions. This is reflected in the balance of speakers, chairs and panels convened for healthcare conferences, with disproportionate gender balance. Accumulating evidence suggests that greater diversity across multiple characteristics, including gender, improves staff experience, organisational performance and patient outcomes. Conferences provide opportunities for inclusivity and new ideas only when attendees feel empowered to speak up. If we are to increase diversity of our current leadership, aspiring leaders need to see relatable role models. This article explores the issue of ‘manels’ and male-dominated speaker lineups, offering practical suggestions for conference organisers, women speakers and male allies to address the issue. We also outline the background to ‘Women Speakers in Healthcare’: a grassroots initiative founded by a team of aspiring leaders, which aims to achieve balanced gender representation at all healthcare conferences and events.