For decades, medicine has been a growing field, employing nearly 16 million people in 2020. The intent of many professionals here is to nurture other human beings yet, they are far from compassionate to their peers. Sexism in medicine is a persisting battle that has never ceased to rage.
Being indispensable, nurses are the silent backbone of the healthcare industry- however, it is assumed that it is a more feminine-inclined role. Due to this, men are disinclined to become nurses and, this toxic masculinity has remained stagnant in the healthcare industry for years. Can you imagine, only 9% of the 4 million nurses in the USA are men. There is the media to blame for this. Along with this, an inherent mentality remains amongst patients who do not want male nurses. It seems ludicrous as there are many male physicians, who patients do not mind at all. Despite this active discouragement for men to pursue medicine as a nurse practitioner, men receive a 6000 USD higher salary than women on average in this practice, a testimonial to discrimination in medicine.
There are more women entering medicine day by day. Medicine is one of the first STEM fields, with a majority of 50.5% women in medical schools than men. However, in the workplace, there is a severe lack of recognition and leadership positions. Unfortunately, as with any other field, women are overlooked for promotions in hospitals and universities and, the reasoning for this given by management is often vague and discernable, all to avoid a corporate lawsuit for gender discrimination. Furthermore, they are disregarded professionally too! A 2017 study had found that female physicians were less likely to be introduced by their professional credentials and are also less likely to be addressed by “Dr” and instead are called “miss”. This, along with the 20,000 USD income divide proves that sexism in medicine is still prevalent.
Within the distinguished medical industry, biases are often overlooked. However, the minuscule representation of women is evident in every workplace and educational institution, so is it really surprising that more than half of the female medical school entrants drop out. Unlike the environment male practitioners experience, women are stripped away from equal training and experiences confined solely to the bias of gender. Unfortunately, women are automatically regarded as inept in a healthcare profession in certain societies leading to condemned skills and practice, for they must fight to be taken seriously. This industry revolves around the needs of the patient and, these subtle biases can affect the quality provided to the patient compromising one’s health.
As society progresses, the healthcare industry has experienced tangible growth. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 (VII) was passed stating prohibition of discrimination against employees based on sex, race color, or religion. This law has been gradually integrated into the workforce, tied into the advancements of a gender-neutral rebranding of nursing to emphasize skills over the prejudice of gender. As the public gains awareness of the underrepresentation of women, campaigns such as #HeForShe running parallel to #MeToo movements have been created to raise promotion and sponsorship of women. Hopefully, this industry will strive to foster an inclusive and respectful opinion to truly integrate and evolve in equality.
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