Equal Shoulders, Equal Scalpel: Women in Orthopedic Residency

“The scalpel weighs the same in every hand; only opportunity makes the difference.” For a long time in India, orthopaedics carried an unspoken label: A specialty meant for men. The association was easy to make – fractures in the middle of the night, long hours in the operating theatre, and physically demanding cases. It was assumed that women might not “fit” into this mold. Yet, as the years unfold, these assumptions are being steadily, and rightly, dismantled. In wards and operating rooms across the country, young female residents are proving every day that orthopaedics is not about brute strength but about precision, perseverance, and presence of mind. The Changing Landscape Despite this progress, the numbers remain sobering. Women still account for