Sir, as a group of oral and maxillofacial surgeons it was heartening to hear of the benefit Ms Ahmed gained as a dental undergraduate from her two week placement in an oral and maxillofacial department. It is to her credit that she has recognised the holistic approach to patients presenting with the conditions she described.

We understand her raising the question about female representation at consultant level in the specialty, but as a group of female consultants we would like to state we are not alone! There is a gender imbalance in all of the surgical specialties and OMFS is not the worst, and the numbers of females in training is increasing all the time.

The female consultants in our specialty not only balance work and family life but are proportionately over represented in leadership roles such as on the Specialty Advisory Committee (SAC), as examiners for the Intercollegiate Examinations Board, and on the British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons Council (BAOMS) and are actively promoting able female trainees into the specialty.

If Ms Ahmed would like to find out more about a career in our wonderful specialty she is welcome to track us down and find out more about it. In common with our male colleagues, we have worked hard, and also managed to lead relatively normal, if busy lives.