Western Journal of Emergency Medicine: Integrating Emergency Care with Population Health

Learning Objectives: Assess the prevalence of self-reported gender bias in EM physicians and strategies in personal care and appearance that are used to overcome them.

Background: Female and nonbinary (NB) emergency medicine (EM) physicians experience gender discrimination. We have limited data regarding how female and NB physicians overcome daily workplace barriers. Gender differences in attire and grooming may be part of a physician’s efforts to be appropriately credited as a physician by their patients.

Objectives: Assess the prevalence of self-reported gender bias in EM physicians and strategies in personal care and appearance that are used to overcome them.

Methods: This is an ongoing cross-sectional survey study of EM physicians at a representative sample of eight emergency departments across the U.S. Sites have been selected to represent diverse practice environments. An anonymous survey was developed through expert consensus and distributed electronically via email. Survey participants were asked to rate the frequency over the past one month of which they experienced gender-biased behaviors or engaged in activities to mitigate gender bias. Descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare across genders.

Results: Preliminary analysis from a single urban academic center demonstrates an overall 37% response rate (59/159). 51.5% (31/59) of respondents identified as female or NB. 59% (35/59) of respondents were residents and 41% (24/59) attendings. See Table 1 for a detailed description of the frequency of which respondents encountered gender bias or engaged in activities to mitigate bias. Female and NB physicians reported experiencing sexist remarks and/or behavior by patients or their family members more often than male physicians. Additional results will be available at the time of the CORD AA to include data from other sites.

Conclusions: Early results demonstrate that female and NB physicians engage in more activities to reduce gender bias. These activities represent an additional mental burden and time commitment that may contribute to gender disparities in salaries, hiring practices, and retention.