Research Exposes Trend For Patients Under Female Doctors
Repeated research has consistently demonstrated that having a female physician could potentially decrease the risk of mortality or major health complications following surgery or hospitalization.
The most recent findings, published in the British Journal of Surgery, indicate that surgical teams with a higher representation of women tend to experience fewer health complications among patients compared to teams dominated by men.
The study conducted a comparison between hospitals in Canada where female surgeons and anesthesiologists comprised over 35% of the surgical teams with those having a lower proportion of female doctors. It was found that increased gender diversity was associated with a 3% decrease in the likelihood of serious health complications occurring within three months of a major, non-emergency surgery.
These conclusions were drawn from an analysis of more than 700,000 procedures performed at 88 hospitals in Ontario between 2009 and 2019.
Several studies over the past decade have echoed similar sentiments, indicating that female physicians tend to yield better patient outcomes. For instance, a recent study revealed that patients treated by female physicians were less likely to face mortality or hospital readmissions compared to those treated by male physicians. Likewise, elderly patients under the care of female internists exhibited similar trends, as highlighted in a 2017 study.
Additional research has shown that patients treated by female surgeons experienced fewer post-surgery complications, such as bleeding.
Various factors may contribute to this trend: Female doctors often allocate more time for patient consultations compared to their male counterparts and tend to interrupt patients less frequently. This enhanced communication could potentially lead to more accurate diagnoses, treatments, and avert the oversight of medical complications.
Moreover, research suggests that female doctors are more inclined to provide preventive care, adhere to clinical guidelines, and engage in shared decision-making with patients.
However, these findings should not diminish trust in male physicians, cautioned Dr. Julie Hallet, the lead author of the study and an associate professor of surgery at the University of Toronto. Hallet emphasized the importance of diversity within surgical teams, asserting that hospitals deliver superior care when they foster inclusivity.
Dr. Dana Telem, a surgery professor at the University of Michigan, suggested that the improved outcomes associated with female surgeons may stem from the quality of post-operative care patients receive.
Despite the growing body of evidence, assessing performance disparities between male and female physicians remains complex, as noted by Dr. Andrea Riner, a general surgery resident at the University of Florida Health. While acknowledging the significance of such research in combating bias against female physicians, she cautioned against oversimplifying conclusions regarding the superiority of one gender over the other in healthcare delivery.
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