According to a study published in Dec. 19 in a peer-reviewed medical journal, there is a clinical difference in the outcomes of certain patients who have female doctors and those who have male doctors. New York elderly residents who are sick and have to be admitted to a hospital to receive care may be interested to know that having a female doctor increases their chances of survival. In addition, such patients have less of a tendency to be re-hospitalized within a month of being discharged.
The purpose of the study was to determine if the differences in medical care resulted in better outcomes. The researchers examined the records of over 1.5 million Medicare patients who were 65 years of age or older and had been admitted to the hospital for non-surgical care between 2011 and 2014. They discovered that 11.49 percent of patients treated by male internists died within a month, while 11.07 percent of those treated by female internists did the same. Researchers believe that if male doctors could achieve the same results as female doctors, there would be an additional 32,000 Medicare patients whose lives would be saved. This is roughly the number of U.S. traffic fatalities each year.
Based on information from previous studies, it is believed that female doctors follow practice guidelines based on scientific data more often than their male colleagues. They are also more likely to speak positively and reassuringly with their patients, spend more time with them and inquire about their social and emotional well-being.
Poor care from a practitioner can result in a worsened medical condition and even death. People who have been harmed in such a fashion may want to meet with a medical malpractice attorney to see what recourse they may have in order to seek appropriate compensation for their losses.
