Female doctors earn 74 cents for every male physician, says president of Women in Medicine

Dr. Jain shares some highlights from the 2024 Women in Medicine Summit, and shares some ways in which we should address the gender equity gap in healthcare.

“I think one of the most important aspects of this issue that often gets overlooked, is that leveling the playing field and achieving equity in the healthcare workforce is not only the RIGHT thing to do, it also helps with patient outcomes, quality of care, retention, and it is financially beneficial for institutions.

There are real world solutions we can put into place now to start working towards fixing this perfasive problem that exists all across our healthcare spaces, from academia to hospital employed, from urban to rural settings. Discriminiation, implicit bias, and inequity exists across the board. So lets work together to fix it.

📣 Pay transparency, this is a no brainer and should already be the norm
📣 Compensate the “invisible work” that many #WomenInMedicine do. The work is essential and helps hospitals and institutions succeed, but it is not recognized, takes away time from other tasks, and is not considered “promotable” workd.
📣 Nominate women for awards. A study by Dr. Valerie Press and colleage at UChicago Medicine showed that when you nominate more women for awards…more women get awards.
📣 Address bullying, harassment, gaslighting in the moment. Develop real repercussions for bad actors. Don’t just “pass the trash” and keep promoting those to other institutions or positions who misbehave.
📣 Create clear pathways for those who are targeted or harassed to report, and know that there will not be repercussions for bringing concerns forward.
📣 Amplify the voices of those who are often overlooked. #SponsorHer. Say her name when she is not in the room to suggest her for an opportunity.
📣 Allyship is KEY. We need people of ALL genders working towards closing this gap
📣The problem is amplified for those with intersectional identities, such as women of color. We need to be even more intentional on how we ensure the most qualified are advanced and are suggested for opportunities, not just the people in our own circles.
📣 Data consistently shows that when leadership is representative of the communities being served, patient outcomes are better. We MUST be doing more to ensure our future includes these diverse voices at the very top.

There is a lot to be done to close the #GenderGap in healthcare.”