NBC NEWS – Having a female doctor could lower the risk of death or major health issues after surgery or hospitalization, studies have shown over and over.
The latest evidence, published Wednesday in the British Journal of Surgery, finds that surgical teams with more women see fewer health complications among patients than male-dominated teams.
The study compared hospitals in Canada where female surgeons and anesthesiologists made up more than 35% of the surgical teams to hospitals with a smaller share of female doctors.
Higher levels of gender diversity were associated with a 3% lower chance of serious health complications for patients within three months of a major, non-emergency surgery.
The findings are based on an analysis of more than 700,000 procedures at 88 hospitals in Ontario between 2009 and 2019.
A handful of studies over the last decade have similarly shown that female doctors have better patient outcomes.
A study published last month found that women treated by female physicians were less likely to die or be readmitted to the hospital compared to those treated by male physicians. The same was true for elderly hospitalized patients treated by female internists, according to a 2017 study.
Still other research has shown that patients treated by female surgeons had fewer complications post-surgery, such as bleeding.
There may be several reasons for the trend: Female doctors tend to have longer visits with patients than their male colleagues do, and to interrupt them less often. In theory, this extra communication could lead to more accurate diagnoses and treatments or ensure that medical complications aren’t missed or ignored.
Research also suggests that female doctors are more likely to give preventive care, adhere to clinical guidelines and engage in shared decision-making with patients.
But the findings shouldn’t prompt patients to lose trust in male physicians, said Dr. Julie Hallet, lead author of the new study …
