abstract: 'Purpose: Despite being in high numbers in medical colleges, only a small

  proportion of women join the workforce and even fewer reach leadership

  positions in Pakistan. Organizations like United Nations and Women

  Global Health are working towards closing the gender gap. The study aims

  to explore the enablers and barriers for women in healthcare leadership

  and to explore the strategies to promote women in leadership positions

  in Pakistan''s specific societal culture. Methods: In this qualitative

  exploratory study, semi-structured interviews of 16 women holding

  leadership positions in the health-care profession, ie, medical and

  dental (basic or clinical sciences) were included. The data were

  collected until saturation was achieved. The data were analyzed in MS

  Excel. Deductive and Inductive thematic analysis was done.Results:

  Thirty-eight codes were generated that were combined in the form of

  categories. The major themes that emerged from the data were: elevating

  factors, the shackles holding them back, let us bring them up and

  implicit bias. Elevating factors were intrinsic motivation and

  exceptional qualifications, while the shackles were related to gender

  bias, male insecurities, and lack of political background. It was

  noteworthy that differences in gender roles were highly defined by

  culture and religion.Conclusion: There is a need to change the

  perception of South Asian society and redefine gender roles through

  media and individual attempts. Women must take charge of their choices

  and believe in themselves. The institutional policies to help promote

  gender equality would be mentorship programs for new faculty,

  gender-responsive training for everyone, equal opportunities for all,

  and maintaining gender diversity on all committees.'
affiliation: 'Iftikhar, S (Corresponding Author), 26-C Extens DHA Phase 8 Exparkview,
  Lahore, Pakistan.

  Iftikhar, Sundus; Arooj, Mahwish, Univ Lahore, Univ Coll Med \& Dent, Lahore, PB,
  Pakistan.

  Yasmeen, Rahila; Khan, Rehan Ahmed, Riphah Int Univ, Islamic Int Med Coll, Rawalpindi,
  PB, Pakistan.

  Iftikhar, Sundus, 26-C Extens DHA Phase 8 Exparkview, Lahore, Pakistan.'
author: Iftikhar, Sundus and Yasmeen, Rahila and Khan, Rehan Ahmed and Arooj, Mahwish
author-email: sundus@iftikhar.me
author_list:
- family: Iftikhar
  given: Sundus
- family: Yasmeen
  given: Rahila
- family: Khan
  given: Rehan Ahmed
- family: Arooj
  given: Mahwish
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.2147/JHL.S399430
files: []
issn: 1179-3201
journal: JOURNAL OF HEALTHCARE LEADERSHIP
keywords: 'gender disparity; leadership in the health profession; gender roles in

  Pakistani society'
keywords-plus: WOMEN; MEDICINE
language: English
number-of-cited-references: '29'
pages: 71-82
papis_id: a3d142b1a42e51db7273826aa5ab62f7
ref: Iftikhar2023barriersfacilitators
researcherid-numbers: Iftikhar, Sundus/IWM-5274-2023
times-cited: '0'
title: 'Barriers and Facilitators for Female Healthcare Professionals to Be Leaders
  in Pakistan: A Qualitative Exploratory Study'
type: Article
unique-id: WOS:001005628100001
usage-count-last-180-days: '2'
usage-count-since-2013: '2'
volume: '15'
web-of-science-categories: Health Policy \& Services
year: '2023'