Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional Study
Introduction: Historically, women’s roles in society were primarily as caretakers and healers. As women’s roles in healing became more complex and lucrative, they faced social opposition to taking on instrumental healing tasks. Currently, women make up about 50% of the medical workforce; however, th...
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JCDR Research and Publications Private Limited
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research |
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| Online Access: | https://jcdr.net/articles/PDF/20502/74791_CE[Ra1]_F(SHU)_QC(PS_OM)_PF1(AG_SS)_PFA(IS)_PB(AG_IS)_PN(IS).pdf |
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| author | Usha Devi Minnu Panditrao Shilpa Bansal |
| author_facet | Usha Devi Minnu Panditrao Shilpa Bansal |
| author_sort | Usha Devi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction: Historically, women’s roles in society were primarily as caretakers and healers. As women’s roles in healing became more complex and lucrative, they faced social opposition to taking on instrumental healing tasks. Currently, women make up about 50% of the medical workforce; however, they still face discrimination in healthcare due to their gender, both from patients and professional colleagues.
Aim: To evaluate patients’ perspectives on the preference for the gender of surgeons and anaesthesiologists for elective surgeries, as well as their awareness of anaesthesia and their attitudes toward anaesthesiologists.
Materials and Methods: An institution-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in the operating theatre complex of a postgraduate institute in a rural area of Northern India. After obtaining approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee (IEC) and patient consent, the study was conducted on 400 patients aged 18 to 85 years who were admitted for elective surgeries in different specialties. A structured questionnaire was prepared and divided into three sections: patients’ demographic profile, surgical history and preference for the gender of surgeons and patients’ awareness and knowledge about anesthesia and the role of anaesthesiologists. The questionnaire was administered to patients who attended the preanaesthesia clinic for preanaesthesia assessment. Patients were asked questions from the proforma in their vernacular language and appropriate answers were marked on the questionnaire sheet. All collected data was recorded in a Microsoft Excel sheet and analysed using Microsoft Excel software.
Results: Data was collected and analysed from a total of 400 patients, of whom 207 (51.7%) were males and 193 (48.3%) were females. A total of 174 (43.5%) patients preferred a male surgeon, 99 (24.8%) preferred a female surgeon and 127 (31.7%) had no preference. A total of 197 (49.3%) patients who preferred a same-gender surgeon stated that they felt more comfortable with a doctor of the same gender. Interestingly, although a significant number of patients acknowledged the importance of anesthesia 392 (98%), they had poor awareness regarding anaesthesiologists as specialist medical professionals.
Conclusion: The findings of the current study conclude that gender bias exists in the medical profession, as female surgeons are not acknowledged in the same way as their male professional colleagues. Additionally, the level of knowledge about anesthesia and anaesthesiologists among surgical patients is quite low, despite their recognition of the importance of anesthesia during surgery. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-678809b745854bdc96b94e5ddd39a3cb |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2249-782X 0973-709X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | JCDR Research and Publications Private Limited |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-678809b745854bdc96b94e5ddd39a3cb2025-01-20T11:28:26ZengJCDR Research and Publications Private LimitedJournal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research2249-782X0973-709X2025-01-011901343810.7860/JCDR/2025/74791.20502Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional StudyUsha Devi0Minnu Panditrao1Shilpa Bansal2Assistant Professor, Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Bathinda, Punjab, India.Professor, Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Bathinda, Punjab, India.Professor, Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Bathinda, Punjab, India.Introduction: Historically, women’s roles in society were primarily as caretakers and healers. As women’s roles in healing became more complex and lucrative, they faced social opposition to taking on instrumental healing tasks. Currently, women make up about 50% of the medical workforce; however, they still face discrimination in healthcare due to their gender, both from patients and professional colleagues. Aim: To evaluate patients’ perspectives on the preference for the gender of surgeons and anaesthesiologists for elective surgeries, as well as their awareness of anaesthesia and their attitudes toward anaesthesiologists. Materials and Methods: An institution-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in the operating theatre complex of a postgraduate institute in a rural area of Northern India. After obtaining approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee (IEC) and patient consent, the study was conducted on 400 patients aged 18 to 85 years who were admitted for elective surgeries in different specialties. A structured questionnaire was prepared and divided into three sections: patients’ demographic profile, surgical history and preference for the gender of surgeons and patients’ awareness and knowledge about anesthesia and the role of anaesthesiologists. The questionnaire was administered to patients who attended the preanaesthesia clinic for preanaesthesia assessment. Patients were asked questions from the proforma in their vernacular language and appropriate answers were marked on the questionnaire sheet. All collected data was recorded in a Microsoft Excel sheet and analysed using Microsoft Excel software. Results: Data was collected and analysed from a total of 400 patients, of whom 207 (51.7%) were males and 193 (48.3%) were females. A total of 174 (43.5%) patients preferred a male surgeon, 99 (24.8%) preferred a female surgeon and 127 (31.7%) had no preference. A total of 197 (49.3%) patients who preferred a same-gender surgeon stated that they felt more comfortable with a doctor of the same gender. Interestingly, although a significant number of patients acknowledged the importance of anesthesia 392 (98%), they had poor awareness regarding anaesthesiologists as specialist medical professionals. Conclusion: The findings of the current study conclude that gender bias exists in the medical profession, as female surgeons are not acknowledged in the same way as their male professional colleagues. Additionally, the level of knowledge about anesthesia and anaesthesiologists among surgical patients is quite low, despite their recognition of the importance of anesthesia during surgery.https://jcdr.net/articles/PDF/20502/74791_CE[Ra1]_F(SHU)_QC(PS_OM)_PF1(AG_SS)_PFA(IS)_PB(AG_IS)_PN(IS).pdfbiasimportanceknowledgewoman |
| spellingShingle | Usha Devi Minnu Panditrao Shilpa Bansal Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional Study Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research bias importance knowledge woman |
| title | Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional Study |
| title_full | Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional Study |
| title_fullStr | Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional Study |
| title_short | Patients’ Perspectives on the Preference for the Gender of Medical Professionals in Perioperative Care and Attitudes Toward Anaesthesiologists: A Cross-sectional Study |
| title_sort | patients perspectives on the preference for the gender of medical professionals in perioperative care and attitudes toward anaesthesiologists a cross sectional study |
| topic | bias importance knowledge woman |
| url | https://jcdr.net/articles/PDF/20502/74791_CE[Ra1]_F(SHU)_QC(PS_OM)_PF1(AG_SS)_PFA(IS)_PB(AG_IS)_PN(IS).pdf |
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