Are you crazy? Do female doctors deserve less? says a doctor
"Doctors deserve less pay than their male counterparts." With this sentence in the Dallas Medical Journal, the Texas physician Dr. Gary Tigges caused a stir. His commentary appeared as part of a feature of the journal in which physicians should share their thoughts on what to do about the gender pay gap in their industry. Tigges quite questionable statement:
Female doctors work less hard than doctors and also treat fewer patients because they do not want to hurry or simply do not want to work overtime.
Women allegedly set false priorities
His colleagues would "prioritize things other than the job, be it the family, the social life, whatever." The Gender Pay Gap is therefore absolutely justified, according to him:
Nothing needs to be changed unless doctors are willing to work harder and with more hours.
Headwind gets tigges from women and men alike? also from colleagues. The outrage in the social networks is huge. Esther Choo, a physician and founder of a treatment equality consultancy, tweeted, "This view is not supported by any data." And Jorge Montoya, cardiologist from Mexico, writes: "This doctor is not only wrong, he is part of the problem."
Gender Pay Gap continues to grow
What study data really shows: Medical women actually earn a good 20 to 30 percent less than their male counterparts, and the trend is rising. And Dr. Tigges? He feels misunderstood. His statement has been taken out of context, and he was also unaware that the comment should be published, he complains in the Dallas Morning News. And he rowed back: "My comment sounds terrible and does not reflect what I really wanted to say, I do not want to argue that female doctors should earn less, but that they deserve worse, because other factors play a role."
And at least with the last part he is right. Studies show that women doctors actually work fewer hours and treat fewer patients. But not because they are lazy? but because at home they take on more duties than their partners or even their male colleagues. According to a study from 2017, female doctors with children work around 11 hours less than those who have no children. And this extra burden is then used by some people to justify the gender pay gap.
Is my partner the problem?
The problem is actually homemade. Would more men support their partner at home and work a little shorter, could that be an effective weapon against the gender pay gap? not only in the medical field.
VIDEO TIP: Study: Women with these names deserve the most
