Senior women physicians: the question of retirement

Little is known about women physicians in their senior years. This paper describes a cross-sectional survey of 21 women physicians ranging in age from 59 to 95 years in eight different medical fields. The survey showed that 14 (66.7%) worked after age 65, including four who worked into their 70s and four who worked into their 80s. Although reasons for retirement varied, most retired due to personal illness or the wish to pursue other interests. Most respondents (76.2%) were married or had been married; 80% of these had children. This survey also explored initial practice styles and changes over time, and retirement planning and financing. Respondents also were asked to identify role models and to share their own mentoring activities. Traditionally, women professionals often have been thought to have shorter careers than men due to family constraints. Yet most of the women in this sample have had long-lived careers with simultaneous marital and family responsibilities.