Why will there be fewer female representatives at the BMA annual meeting this year?

On 24 and 25 June BMA members will gather in Belfast for the organisation’s annual representative meeting (ARM). But this year the meeting, which debates and sets BMA policy, will welcome noticeably fewer women than in previous years. This is despite a BMA pledge to tackle gender bias after an independent review almost five years ago.12Daphne Romney KC carried out the review after two female doctors alleged sexism and sexual harassment by elected members.3 Her 2019 report, which identified an “old boys’ club” culture that left some women “undervalued, ignored, or patronised,” led the BMA to apologise and commit to implementing 31 recommendations. But data shown to The BMJ indicate that the proportion of women selected to attend the meeting has fallen this year to a number the BMA itself acknowledges is “frustrating low.”To understand why the gender trend is going in the wrong direction, it’s necessary to look at…
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