In August 2018 officials from Tokyo Medical University admitted to systematically altering medical school admission test scores to disadvantage female applicants. Since 2006 the university had been subtracting points from all exam scores, then adding up to 20 points to those of male applicants, with the explicit goal of reducing the percentage of women entering medical school. (The percentage of enrollees who were women had reached 40% in 2010, and now stands at approximately 30%.)
How Discrimination Against Female Doctors Hurts Patients
Systematic discrimination against women in medicine constitutes a potential threat to patient safety and public health. Accumulating evidence shows that women deliver superior care. For example, one study of over 1.5 million Medicare patients found that those who were treated by a female physician were less likely to die or be readmitted to the hospital within 30 days than those patients treated by a male physician. A separate study of over 100,000 surgical patients found the same effect: Patients who were operated on by a female surgeon were significantly less likely to die within the next 30 days. While the underlying mechanisms driving these differences have yet to be fully explored, evidence suggests that female physicians bring unique perspectives to their practice that can improve care. Barriers restricting the access and development of women’s careers in medicine need to be removed, and the field must do a better job of promoting, supporting, and rewarding female physicians.