There are many contributing factors for why women go largely underrepresented in medicine. The patriarchal structure of economics means men often have more financial capital to invest in different ventures. Men are more likely to invest in issues they deem relevant, i.e. issues regarding men’s health. Moreover, men having social and political power gives them the ability to make sweeping decisions on women’s health. 

Women are considered less as candidates for medical research, the reason often cited is the menstrual cycle. Some doctors claim that the hormones in a woman’s body will affect the outcome of clinical trials, leading many trials to only consider the male body. This belief is largely unfounded, as both women and men go through hormonal cycles. Misconceptions like these contribute to a greater culture of women being left out of conversations regarding medicine.

CHILDBIRTH

• Over 17% of women reported some form of mistreatment during childbirth, including violations of privacy and verbal abuse

• Higher rates of reported abuse among Black & Hispanic women compared to White women

• Identities with a higher rate of mistreatment include

  • • young women

    • women with a history of substance abuse

    • women experiencing complications

    • women from lower economic standings

• Women may face discrimination during childbirth based on caste 

• High rates of unnecessary medical interventions, including episiotomy, augmentation, and cesarean sections

• Factors that influence the chance of facing mistreatment

  • • Race

    • Socio-economic standing

    • Marital status

    • Age

      • • Women over 35 were the most likely to report mistreatment

GENDERED PAY DIFFERENCES IN MEDICINE

• 2021 study by Hoff & Lee analyzed 41 studies on pay differences between male and female doctors

  • All relevant studies showed women earning less than men

  • One 2012 study found gender to be a significant predictor of pay

  • A 2000 study determined the pay gap to be $22,347

  • A 2018 study found that male physicians were earning $27,404 more annually than their female counterparts

  • "the pay gap between male and female physicians is significant; is persistent over time; and exists across different medical specialties, physician jobs, and workplaces "

• Women in the health workforce globally earn 28% less than men, and 34% less in India 

• Oncologist study

• Women early in their oncology career report finding it "difficult to gain the trust of co-professionals"

• Women in the private sector are paid less

• A majority of oncologists cited ‘domestic responsibilities’ as a factor preventing career growth

• 17% of women reported not receiving the same overseas training opportunities as men in the same field

• Ophthalmologist study

  • 68% of co-ed responders felt women in ophthalmology had it more difficult than men

    • The majority of these reports came from women

  • Women report "family responsibility, long working hours, and having to work harder"

    • 73% of women felt responsible for childrearing compared to 24% of men

Vedam, Saraswathi, et al. “The Giving Voice to Mothers Study: Inequity and Mistreatment during Pregnancy and Childbirth in the United States.” SpringerLink, BioMed Central, 11 June 2019, link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12978-019-0729-2. 

Mayra, Kaveri, et al. “Why Do Some Health Care Providers Disrespect and Abuse Women during Childbirth in India?” Women and Birth, Elsevier, 5 Mar. 2021, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871519221000329. 

Hoff, Timothy, and Do Rim Lee. “The Gender Pay Gap in Medicine: A Systematic Review : Health Care Management Review.” LWW, 2021, journals.lww.com/hcmrjournal/fulltext/2021/07000/the_gender_pay_gap_in_medicine__a_systematic.11.aspx. 

Nair, Akshay et al. “Work Satisfaction, Burnout and Gender-Based Inequalities among Ophthalmologists in India: A Survey.” Work (Reading, Mass.), U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28211838/.

Chopra, S. et al. "Reducing Gender Disparity in Oncologists in India: An Opportunity to Address Workforce Challenges". Clinical Oncology, Volume 30, Issue 12, 805 - 809.

Pandey, Arushi. “Gender Pay Gap in India’s Health Workforce.” Ideas For India, 9 June 2021, www.ideasforindia.in/topics/human-development/gender-pay-gap-in-india-s-health-workforce.html#:~:text=Different%20pay%20for%20equal%20work,2018).