The Need for Better Representation of Female Physicians in the Healthcare Industry
In recent times, female physicians continue to deal with a range of challenges in the medical field. The challenges they deal with include promotion and payment gaps to implicit bias and sexual harassment. While it is disappointing, you cannot deny the fact that only a small portion of female physicians become medical leaders despite equal numbers of both sexes graduating from medical school. If you look at US healthcare statistics, women comprise only 9{7e878bac634d7d75cb718568d0089036a5a45bc5b1ad98756ac0b159d5a0614a} as division chiefs, 6{7e878bac634d7d75cb718568d0089036a5a45bc5b1ad98756ac0b159d5a0614a} as department chairs, 3{7e878bac634d7d75cb718568d0089036a5a45bc5b1ad98756ac0b159d5a0614a} as healthcare CEOs, and 3{7e878bac634d7d75cb718568d0089036a5a45bc5b1ad98756ac0b159d5a0614a} as chief medical officers. These numbers will never change despite findings that the healthcare workforce mostly includes women, 80{7e878bac634d7d75cb718568d0089036a5a45bc5b1ad98756ac0b159d5a0614a} to be exact. Moreover, these numbers remain the same even if evidence points out that both improved accountability and improved business performance are associated with having women on corporate boards and in upper management.
What you can learn from these numbers is that healthcare leadership needs more female physicians as representatives. The need for better representation of female physicians in the healthcare industry is yet to be realized with the many obstacles they deal with daily. Even so, there are increasing opportunities in healthcare to give female physicians a chance to gain leadership in the industry. Organizations should know how to give importance to specific areas in healthcare that would promote women in top positions.
Organizations must carefully assess specific areas in healthcare so female physicians will get equal leadership opportunities as male physicians in the industry. In order for healthcare organizations to progress in these efforts, they have to check with their leadership and how they represent women. They also need to understand what female physicians experience in the workplace compared to male physicians. Quantification is the key to change in gender roles and imbalances. For instance, charters should give recognition to women who advance their education and research efforts. Depending on how women meet the organization’s requirements, their affiliated institutions may receive gold, silver, or bronze awards. Institutions that get a silver award or higher often receive health research funding. What you can see from these awards is the recognition of diversity and gender issues. All these things result in catalyzed cultural and structural changes as well as the creation of financial and numerical incentives for change. The result is providing female researchers increased career support.
Unlike male physicians, female physicians find it challenging to bag major recognition and awards. This has implications on the promotions they receive. Using the concept of systematization, the industry can help female physicians by providing equal recognition to the achievements of both sexes. According to research, gender gaps in terms of recognition exist during the early stages of the female physician’s career. With systematic publicity and identification of the achievements of female physicians, organizations can resolve disparities based on gender. There are more extensive applications to this concept. They include systematizing appointment of physicians to committees, search processes, and a nomination for increased responsibility and leadership roles.