Gender occupational differences in the medical field analyzed in a recent study showed potential challenges for the growing number of female endocrinologists and their patients.

The study, co-authored by University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health endocrinologist and associate professor Elaine Pelley, analyzed data about gender discrepancies across the medical field. It also examined the differences in experiences between male and female physicians and what problems they face in the workplace to see if this information could be applied to the field of endocrinology, Pelley said.

These differences, Pelley said, included specialty interests, professional satisfaction and time physicians spend at home or with child care.

“If the majority of physicians are facing [a] problem, whatever that problem is could then be a problem for our success of the specialty [of endocrinology] as a whole,” Pelley said. 

Endocrinology, Pelley said, studies problems related to the various hormones in the body and covers matters such as thyroid disease, diabetes and other hormonal issues.

Recently, the number of endocrinologists has been declining. This decline, Pelley said, could lead to additional problems as there are fewer endocrinologists to help patients with these conditions, which are becoming more common.

This makes the apparent declining interest among medical residents, which while seen in both genders is much more pronounced in males, in pursuing training in endocrinology particularly concerning, Pelley said.

According to a UW School of Medicine and Public Health statement, currently more than 70 percent of incoming training endocrinologists are women, while 56 percent of practicing endocrinologists are male. Data from 2013 has shown there has been a 43 percent drop in male applicants to endocrinology programs over a period of four years.

With fewer male endocrinologists, Pelley said female endocrinologists will not only have to meet the increasing number of patients with these conditions, but will potentially face the challenges that generally occur when an occupation experiences a gender shift.

General challenges in the medical field that could affect future female endocrinologists include the gender pay gap and occupational segregation, Pelley said.

An occupation that is generally considered to be more “feminine” experiences pay gaps. These gaps occur not only between men and women in the same field, but between women if their field is considered less feminine, UW economics professor LeAnn Tigges explained.

Even when holding skills and credentials equal, there is evidence that work designated as “women’s work,” is not valued as much or seen in high regard, Tigges said.

“When [you] see a particular specialty area within a larger field that becomes feminized or has traditionally been a province of women employees, then those areas are often paid less than fields that require similar kinds of skill or training,” Tigges said.

Among these fields that are often considered to be more feminized include dental hygienists and nurses, Pelley said.

In a field like endocrinology, which is already a lower paying speciality, a gender shift could potentially mean females may be paid less than male endocrinologists and other physicians with similar skill sets, Pelley said.

Even if corrections are made to account for factors that could explain pay gap differences, like experience or amount of hours a physician works, Pelley said there still is a gap.

There has been a decrease in earnings for those working “female occupations,” Pelley said. There are many financial factors that are problematic, which can also influence what field females and males may choose when considering their specialty.

It’s a problem that needs to be taken head on, Pelley said. But that means all occupations even outside of the medical field need to consider the gender pay gap as well as the occupational segregation issue, she said.

“I think this is a problem globally for women in the workplace, we just happened to have been looking at it from a certain lens, but it really is a broader issue,” Pelley said.