One doesn’t have to pull up Google to figure out that even though women’s rights have made great progress since earlier times men are still the dominating gender in the workforce. A whopping almost 82% of men make up Pakistan’s workforce. Though you would expect every workforce to have an overwhelming male majority, a few careers are an exception. In this context, specifically, gynecology is also defined as ‘a branch of medicine that deals with the diseases and routine physical care of the reproductive system of women’ according to a quick google search. A whopping almost 82% of men make up Pakistan’s workforce.
Now the question remains, why is there such a lack of men in this field? While there is no clear answer many people have speculated and researched and each has offered their own explanations in turn. Some suggest that the problem roots back into something much more simple which is gender bias. That a lot of doctors have a preference with who they treat and as a result are more hesitant to treat a female patient and to take care of a female patient and in turn, women are also more hesitant to have a male doctor as a gynecologist. Statistical studies show that only around 5% of patients did not have a preference with what gender their doctor was as long as the setting was professional and the quality of care remained the same. This explanation may make sense in a way that women may be more uncomfortable around men due to the stigma and harassment they face about their bodies from men from a younger age. Other than this when women were asked if they would prefer a male doctor if it meant better quality care, they still answered no and their reasoning was the pressure they faced from their husbands and family. Other reasons also include religious beliefs and societal stigma.
Positive experiences around general gynecology also help lessen the stigma. This remains true both for the patient and the doctor. Studies have shown that teaching programs including practical using plastic models have helped students perform a lot better. Especially since those using these learning methods tend to pick up things quickly and tend to perform better in real-life situations compared to others.
It is true that having more men in the field may offer varied perspectives and thus keep the field alive because even though men make up a small percentage of gynecologists, if the percentage keeps decreasing the field itself may collapse.
At the end of the day, a doctor is a doctor and every one of them has been professionally trained according to their field, in this case, gynecology. It truly depends on the individual’s preference as to what doctor they choose to go for. Historically, more men tend to apply for jobs as a gynecologist as the job does require for you to be ready to handle situations at any given time. However, with all of this said decisions to take a male or female doctor depend on the patient’s preference and the doctor’s quality of care.
However, with all of this said decisions to take a male or female doctor depend on the patient’s preference and the doctor’s quality of care.
For a long time gynecology as a field did have a lot of male doctors working in it and only recently, about 15 years ago, has the statistic changed with women having an overwhelming majority now of around 80-90 percent depending on where you live.
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