The feminization of medicine has accelerated dramatically in the last four decades.
In the 1980s, women made up about 30% of medical school students, but now they make up 54%. Between 2004 and 2022, the number of women in the active physician workforce jumped 97%, compared to an increase of 13% among men. And for the sixth year in a row, women outnumber men in medical schools.
"There's a phrase called the 'feminization of medicine' in that we are seeing more women coming into it," Diana Lautenberger, director of gender equity initiatives for the Association of American Medical Colleges, told Medscape. "The result is almost this return of viewing medicine as this profession of healing and caring. This idea that physicians are not just in surgery in the operating room performing operations on patients, but that medicine really is about holistic care."
The trend has had notable effects nationwide. However, despite more than half of medical students being women, they still represent only 38% of active physicians nationwide in 2022.
Women often choose to enter a limited number of fields — with pediatrics, obstetrics-gynecology and dermatology being the most common — due to work-life balance and family requirements, Meera Kondapaneni, MD, chief of cardiology at Cleveland-based MetroHealth, told Becker's. This can create barriers to some specialty fields like surgery and cardiology. Breaking these barriers requires conscientious and targeted change from the leadership level.
"The increase in women entering medicine is a positive trend, and it's important for healthcare organizations to be proactive in how they support and retain this growing workforce," Matthew McKinney, director of provider recruitment at Danville, Pa.-based Geisinger, told Becker's.
Women in medicine by the numbers
Systems have been an increase in women joining healthcare, especially since the pandemic, and some are exceeding the national percentage of women in practice and leadership roles.
In MetroHealth's cardiology department, about 40% of the department is women. Of those women, five of the seven are in leadership roles.
Chillicothe, Ohio-based Adena Health System is seeing increased female representation among several specialties, including dermatology, rheumatology and psychiatry.
"While female representation in surgical specialties has historically been lower on a national level, we're proud to have a female orthopedic surgeon — considered a rare achievement as female orthopedic surgeons make up only about 6% to 7% of practicing surgeons in the U.S.," Emily Johnson, MD, physician executive vice president and a family medicine physician at Adena Health, told Becker's. "Additionally 50% of our general surgeons are women, a significant milestone for our health system."
Adena Health also has a number of women in leadership roles. Fifty percent of its governance council representatives, half of its primary care regional medical directors, 36% of primary care medical directors and 24% of service line medical directors across five specialties are women.
New Hyde Park, N.Y.-based Northwell Health has a workforce that is about 72% women across all roles and 42% of its physicians are women. In leadership roles, 61% are women.
Geisinger has seen a 5.5% increase in female physicians in the last year alone.
The system benefits of more women
Patients have better outcomes, lower readmission rates and lower mortality rates within 30 days when they see a female physician, a 2024 study found.
Adena Health found more patients were likely to recommend the system's services in part due to the rise in female physicians. This increase means systems are more likely to develop initiatives that put patients' needs first, Dr. Johnson said.
"For example, we've expanded our midwifery model, introduced a baby- and family-centered recovery program, and expanded telehealth and same-day joint replacement services — initiatives that support patient comfort and convenience while maintaining high clinical standards," she said.
Women also bring a unique perspective, especially to areas like maternal and cardiovascular health, Dr. Kondapaneni said. While both men and women can be excellent physicians, women often bring unique perspectives because they often grasp the barriers their female patients face in accessing and prioritizing care and have first-hand knowledge of the pressures women balance between health, family and household responsibilities.
Patients also feel more comfortable with a provider who looks like them, so having more diversity in the workforce in gender and race allows systems to improve patient trust, Jill Kalman, MD, executive vice president, chief medical officer and deputy physician-in-chief at Northwell, told Becker's.
Beyond patient care, female physicians offer some important cultural and leadership benefits for systems. Primarily, they bring diversity of thought, better problem-solving and innovation, leaders said.
"Women bring invaluable perspectives to our leadership teams," Dr. Johnson said. "Their contributions extend beyond just representing their female colleagues. They actively engage in broader conversations around physician wellness, resilience and work-life balance, which ultimately benefits the entire medical team. Women in leadership positions are often key conveners, working across divisions and service lines to ensure collaborative efforts and shared success. Moreover, they bring a strong focus on clinical quality, ensuring that patient care is always at the forefront of decision-making."
How systems attract, retain more women
Women physicians have different needs and are attracted to different aspects of a company culture.
"Opportunities for professional growth exist for both men and women, but what brings job satisfaction can differ," Dr. Kondapaneni said. "Women often seek a more multifaceted role beyond clinical care. Many are drawn to leadership, research, teaching or administrative roles in addition to patient care."
In light of that, systems are strategies to attract and retain them.
1. Mentorship — Leaders at every system Becker's spoke to said they are advancing and improving mentorship opportunities for female physicians. These programs are for women at all stages of their career and focus on helping them manage their career goals in addition to their personal life responsibilities.
2. Flexible work schedules — Another common trend is to make it easier for female physicians to find jobs that fit with their work-life needs. Flexible scheduling options ranged from part-time work; alternative roles such as group sessions, public health initiatives and education programs; per-diem options and even alternative work schedules such as one week on, one week off.
"That flexibility is particularly important for women physicians," Dr. Kondapaneni said. "Knowing they can have a career that allows them to thrive without compromising their well-being makes a huge difference in recruitment and retention."
3. A welcoming environment — "A big focus right now is ensuring that women feel welcome in every specialty, from surgery to cardiology," Dr. Kalman said. "At Northwell, we provide a wide range of practice environments — from large tertiary hospitals to small community hospitals — so physicians can choose what best fits their career goals and lifestyle. We're also intentional about defining excellence in different ways. We want the best talent in our system, but we also recognize that excellence isn't one-size-fits-all. Different competencies matter in different roles, and we want to support all individuals in reaching their full potential."
4. Meet women where they're at — Systems are also creating a proactive approach to recruitment by creating pipelines, partnering with local communities that help women and even attending more national medical society meetings to showcase their system and bring more women into their workforce.
5. Leaning on representation — Systems are also putting their women leaders front and center to help show upcoming female physicians the career growth opportunities. Geisinger is being more intentional about featuring their employees in marketing materials. MetroHealth ensures any female physician who interviews for a position speaks to at least one female leader during the process.
6. Reducing gender inequities — Geisinger has put an emphasis on reducing gender inequities in both compensation and the hiring process. Compensation has been adjusted to a straight salary model based on years of experience rather than factors that could introduce bias. When recruiting, leaders compare the national breakdown of board-certified physicians in each specialty to ensure the candidate pool is representative, and all candidate pools must include female applicants.
"What's most important is that healthcare recognizes this shift and adapts to attract and retain talent," Mr. McKinney said. "That means offering greater flexibility and ensuring career opportunities are structured to support a diverse workforce. Today, we're seeing a much greater openness to flexibility, which benefits not just women but all physicians."