Are women residency supervisors obligated to nurture?

Scholars in medical education have been increasingly aware over the last few decades of issues of women in medicine, particularly the ways in which women move through medical school and residency, and eventually become faculty. Much of the literature has focused on ways in which women are at a disadvantage in a male-dominated medical culture. But how can they overcome this disadvantage? Should women act like the men around them, emulating their practice patterns, research endeavours and teaching styles? Or do women need to behave differently from men in order to succeed? Isn’t this an outrageously stereotyped way to think about the dilemma? Unfortunately, there may still be embedded gender stereotypes in academic medical centres, particularly in teaching relationships. How can we understand these stereotypes and overcome them?