Gender and the professional career of primary care physicians in Andalusia (Spain)
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URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10481/15090Metadata
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2011-02-28Referencia bibliográfica
Delgado, Ana; Saletti-Cuesta, Lorena; López-Fernández, Luis Andrés; Luna, Juan de Dios; Mateo-Rodríguez, Inmaculada. Gender and the professional career of primary care physicians in Andalusia (Spain). BMC Health Serv Res. 2011 Feb 28;11(1):51
Abstract
Background: Although the proportion of women in medicine is growing, female physicians continue to be
disadvantaged in professional activities. The purpose of the study was to determine and compare the professional
activities of female and male primary care physicians in Andalusia and to assess the effect of the health center on
the performance of these activities.
Methods: Descriptive, cross-sectional, and multicenter study. Setting: Spain. Participants: Population: urban health
centers and their physicians. Sample: 88 health centers and 500 physicians. Independent variable: gender.
Measurements: Control variables: age, postgraduate family medicine specialty (FMS), patient quota, patients/day,
hours/day housework from Monday to Friday, idem weekend, people at home with special care, and family
situation. Dependent variables: 24 professional activities in management, teaching, research, and the scientific
community. Self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive, bivariate, and multilevel logistic regression analyses.
Results: Response: 73.6%. Female physicians: 50.8%. Age: female physicians, 49.1 ± 4.3 yrs; male physicians, 51.3 ±
4.9 yrs (p < 0.001). Female physicians with FMS: 44.2%, male physicians with FMS: 33.3% (p < 0.001). Female
physicians dedicated more hours to housework and more frequently lived alone versus male physicians. There were
no differences in healthcare variables. Thirteen of the studied activities were less frequently performed by female
physicians, indicating their lesser visibility in the production and diffusion of scientific knowledge. Performance of
the majority of professional activities was independent of the health center in which the physician worked.
Conclusions: There are gender inequities in the development of professional activities in urban health centers in
Andalusia, even after controlling for family responsibilities, work load, and the effect of the health center, which
was important in only a few of the activities under study.