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Gender Matters in Medical Education

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Book cover Patient-Centred Medicine in Transition

Part of the book series: Advances in Medical Education ((AMEDUC,volume 3))

Abstract

Perhaps the most significant structural change in recent times in medicine is the shift from a dominance of men entering the profession to a dominance of women worldwide. However, while more women than men will soon be practicing medicine globally, there is a trend for women to work part-time, and women will still not access senior positions in many areas of medicine, including medical education. Surgery will still offer a male-dominated speciality.

Will this ‘feminization’ of medicine result in a change of cultural values, moving from a ‘tough-minded’ to a ‘tender-minded’ culture? Women are better communicators than men in medical contexts and so a feminization of medicine promises to change the landscape of communication with patients and colleagues. Importantly, as such a feminization occurs, will medical education develop a parallel literacy in gender theory, especially contemporary feminisms, to better understand these shifting and complex gender issues?

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Plymouth University Peninsula School of Medicine and Dentistry, Cornwall, UK

    Alan Bleakley

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  1. Alan Bleakley
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Bleakley, A. (2014). Gender Matters in Medical Education. In: Patient-Centred Medicine in Transition. Advances in Medical Education, vol 3. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02487-5_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02487-5_9

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-02486-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-02487-5

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