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Physician gender and screening: do patient differences account for differences in mammography use?
1Cancer Prevention Research Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109-1024, USA. rander@cclink.fhcrc.org
Women & Health
|January 1, 1997
Summary
Women are less likely to get mammograms when seeing a male physician. This study found physician gender significantly impacts screening rates, independent of patient demographics or attitudes.
Area of Science:
- Medical Sociology
- Health Services Research
- Preventive Medicine
Background:
- Mammography screening rates vary, with previous studies suggesting patient-physician gender concordance influences utilization.
- The reasons for these disparities, whether physician behavior or patient characteristics, require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if physician gender influences mammography use among women aged 50-80.
- To investigate whether patient demographic and attitudinal factors explain the association between physician gender and mammography use.
Main Methods:
- A population-based sample of 852 Washington State women (ages 50-80) completed telephone interviews.
- Data collected included mammography use, physician gender, patient demographics, and attitudes towards healthcare.
Main Results:
- Women patients of male physicians had nearly a two-fold reduction in mammography screening compared to those with female physicians (adjusted odds ratio 1.95; p < .05).
- No significant differences were found in education, financial status, employment, patient assertiveness, or values regarding preventive care and communication between patients of male and female physicians.
Conclusions:
- Physician gender is a significant factor associated with mammography screening disparities.
- These differences in screening are not explained by demographic or attitudinal variations in the patient populations.