Female hospital consultants ‘less productive’ than male colleagues

Female hospital consultants working in the NHS are 20% less productive than their male counterparts, research has shown.

Researchers from the Universities of York and Birmingham highlighted a 20% difference in the number of episodes conducted between male and female consultants.

On average, male consultants completed 160 more episodes of care each year than their female colleagues.

Professor Nick Freemantle from the University of Birmingham’s Department of Primary Care said: “Studies in the US and Canada have shown similar results, but in those systems doctors are paid by fees-for-service, so lower activity rates may represent a personal choice.

“It’s harder to know why this difference should exist in the NHS, but it’s a substantial and statistically significant difference across a wide range of medical areas.”

The research was published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.  

Journal editor Dr Kamran Abbasi said: “These data do not show that men are better doctors than women. They do, however, highlight potential differences in the way medical careers develop for men and women in our health service.

“It will be fascinating to explore the underlying reasons for this difference in productivity. Does it mean less is more?”

For more see the University of Birmingham