2 Responses to “Opinion: Call for More Female Physicians in Emergency Medicine Draws Comment about Gender Disparity in Specialty”

1. 

   August 23, 2016

   Walter Foster Reply

   Obviously, there have been a lot of emotion-laden responses on both sides of the debate. However, what concerns me is that any points brought up by the “opposition view” are instantly dismissed as just rampant sexism. As an organization for all EM physicians, we must realize that this is a widespread problem in EDs throughout the nation.

   For example, my group will have 3 maternity leaves in the next few months. Looking at the extra shifts I am going to have to pick up in addition to what I am doing does not look pretty. We do all this just to keep the ED afloat.

   I don’t mind covering for maternity leave, especially for a couple of my pregnant colleagues, who have always shown themselves to be team players. Others, however, have not.

   I would be a fool to say that being a young mother makes one less of a team player, and less willing to help out. I will say that this kind of person can be found among both males and females. However, if you happen to be a person who likes to take advantage of the schedule, being a young mother is a pretty good excuse.

   This is why the line that most irks me from this article is, “Women can choose shifts that allow them to fully participate in their children’s lives and also fulfill their professional aspirations.” I am a father to 4 young children, and I feel left out of their lives a lot because I am busy holding up the walls of the ED. I do not get to CHOOSE shifts that have me working during the coveted daylight hours so I can be with my children. I may get 2-3 of these a month.

   However, I have 2 colleagues that take a different approach. (And yes, I realize this is a case of a minority of people giving the rest a bad name.) I have more children than these 2 young mothers combined. However, when it comes to scheduling, they get preferrential treatment because of all the school pickup/dropoff times, soccer games, etc. They also refuse to pick up any overtime, so any shortages (caused by maternity leave, etc) are the burden of the rest of us (mostly men). They are allowed to get away with this because they threaten to leave our (already short-staffed) department, and we will take any shift we can get from them.

   I would love to see more of my children. I have never taken a day of paternity leave, because I was needed in the ED. I would love to work less. But I can’t. If you repeat this story in most EM groups across the nation, you can begin to understand the underswelling of resentment that you have tapped into during these discussions.

   One last thought: All of my colleagues and I are payed the exact same hourly rate. However, since the men work far more we have a very severe case of the dreaded income disparity. The only way I can see to fix it in our group is to pay the women a higher hourly rate than the men.

   • 

     February 12, 2021

     Sydney De Angelis Reply

     Hello, Walter.
     I understand the points you are making. Covering maternity leave is not easy. I have been a mother, director and line doc. And I know this is 5 years after your comment, but the response is still timely.
     First, was it fair to out the young mothers in your group, and to air the dirty laundry of your colleagues in a national publication? You could have made general observations instead.
     Secondly, let’s address the reality female EM physicians face. We are only 27% of the EM physician workforce. Despite what the author said, since we make up 36% of EM residents, a large number of us realize right away that the field isn’t the flexible work environment we thought it was once we have children. The research shows that the decisions physician mothers make are often not much of a “choice”. They disproportionately are forced to change their work schedules due to disruptions in child care . Women physicians also do 8.5 hrs/week more domestic work than our male counterparts. Statistically, the majority of male physicians have spouses who either work part time or not at all, and can “hold down the home front”. Support women through maternity leaves, and we are more likely to stay long term with the group. Most of us are distinctly aware that we are perceived as “being a burden”. Ask any working mother; we don’t feel like we are “getting away” with anything. We do what we can to meet all the responsibilities in front of us. I personally switched to overnights 3-4 days a week to try to balance my time with my children while they are young, and work more Saturdays than anyone on my team.
     Instead of ascribing motive to the requests of the women in your group, it could be more constructive to consider the societal and family constraints they are working within. Advocating for universal childcare, equity in pay (yes, female physicians are still getting paid less despite what you state about your group),and advocating for more support for all families is a start. From a practical standpoint, sitting down to work out more favorable scheduling practices with your partners would most likely achieve better outcomes for all involved.