Objectives

A recently published simulation study suggested that women are inferior leaders of cardiopulmonary resuscitation efforts. The aim of this study was to compare female and male code leaders in regard to cardiopulmonary resuscitation outcomes in a real-world clinical setting.

Design

Retrospective cohort review.

Setting

Two academic, urban hospitals in San Diego, California.

Subjects

One-thousand eighty-two adult inpatients who suffered cardiac arrest and underwent cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Interventions

None.

Measurements and main results

We analyzed whether physician code leader gender was independently associated with sustained return of spontaneous circulation and survival to discharge and with markers of quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Of all arrests, 327 (30.1%) were run by female physician code leaders with 251 (76.8%) obtaining return of spontaneous circulation, and 122 (37.3%) surviving to discharge. Male physicians ran 757 codes obtaining return of spontaneous circulation in 543 (71.7%) with 226 (29.9%) surviving to discharge. When adjusting for variables, female physician code leader gender was independently associated with a higher likelihood of return of spontaneous circulation (odds ratio, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.01-1.85; p = 0.049) and survival to discharge (odds ratio, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.15-2.02; p < 0.01). Additionally, the odds ratio for survival to discharge was 1.62 (95% CI, 1.13-2.34; p < 0.01) for female physicians with a female code nurse when compared with male physician code leaders paired with a female code nurse. Gender of code leader was not associated with cardiopulmonary resuscitation quality.

Conclusions

In contrast to data derived from a simulated setting with medical students, real life female physician leadership of cardiopulmonary resuscitation is not associated with inferior outcomes. Appropriately, trained physicians can lead high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation irrespective of gender.