Sixty per cent of doctors graduating in 2006 were women, but medical academia remains the preserve of men, reveals research published this week.

Only two out of 33 heads of medical schools are women and only 11% of professors are women, points out the research project, Women in Academic Medicine.

Few female doctors are attracted into or retained by academia, it says, and with a major competitor like the NHS, this is unlikely to change unless action is taken.

The research backs up calls by England's chief medical officer, Liam Donaldson, in his 2006 annual report for removal of opportunity blocks for women pursuing any medical career (doi: 10.1136/bmj.39280.523657.4E).

In it he says inflexible working hours, poor childcare provision, and an absence of tax incentives are all obstacles to women generally, but these are “exacerbated by the work patterns in modern medicine.” He added: “The …