Are women doctors safer?

Nearly half of students in US medical schools are female. Studies show that, compared to their male counterparts, women doctors are friendlier, spend more time with their patients, and are less likely to be sued.

According to Jorge Girotti of the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical School, women doctors are more empathetic, compassionate, and nurturing. “If you bring that attitude in, you’re more likely to see the overall patient as a whole rather than just a disease.”

Another arguable plus for women doctors is that they work fewer hours — a result of their concern for a healthy work/life balance. Although this may make them less available, women doctors are more likely to avoid burnout. According to Jennifer Shu, an Atlanta pediatrician, “Patients want someone who is happy and fresh and enjoys working.”

Does all this compassion, nurturing, and “freshness” translate into a better safety record for female doctors?

It’s not that women are better doctors

The UK has experienced a “feminisation” of the medical workforce similar to that in the US. A recent British survey analyzed 5000 doctors and dentists who had been referred to the National Clinical Assessment Service (NCAS). Referrals happen when there are concerns about the behavior, clinical skills, or conduct of doctors. Only 20 percent of referrals were for women, who make up 40% of the workforce.

Sometimes a doctor’s behavior is serious enough that he or she is barred from practicing. According to the NCAS survey, this happened far less often to women than to men. Of the general practitioners who were prohibited from practicing, only 13 percent were women. For doctors working in hospitals, the percentage of women was 15.

Rosemary Field, deputy director of the NCAS, had this to say: “It is not that women are better doctors than men. But there is research showing that they tend to have longer consultations and are more patient-centred than men. Other studies show they are less likely to be risk takers.”

The end result: Women doctors are actually safer or … their patients are less inclined to report them. Or perhaps it’s a combination of the two.

Be nice to your patients

Are women doctors really “nicer?” Is any doctor less likely to be reported for misconduct if he or she behaves nicely?

I’m reminded of a passage from Sandeep Jauhar’s book Intern. It was the first day of his medical internship. The incoming class was listening to a lecture by a hospital lawyer on how to avoid lawsuits. The lawyer’s advice: “Be nice to your patients. Doctors who were nice to their patients were rarely sued even in cases of egregious malpractice.”

Jauhar continues: “I looked around the room, trying to gauge the reaction of my classmates, frankly surprised that such a cynical thing was being taught on the first day of residency. No one’s eyes met mine.”

Related posts:
The doctor/patient relationship: What have we lost?
Doctors in the trenches speak out – Part two
Contempt and compassion: The noncompliant patient

Image source: The Witch Doctor