Is it weird for guys to go into ob/gyn?

[Chuckwalla]

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I'm going to have to disagree. I'm in weekly meetings with one of the biggest Ob/gyn groups in the country (UPMC) and they definitely imply that they are looking for good male practitioners because it is becoming a female dominated field. If anything men are at an advantage I'd say from my experience.

I completely agree that men will have an easy time gaining residency and support from administrators. It does not look good for one gender to dominate a field, however a female dominated field is light years more acceptable than a male dominated one.

The problem comes in actually practicing for male OB/GYN's. Not securing a residency.

 

[Law2Doc]

I completely agree that men will have an easy time gaining residency and support from administrators. It does not look good for one gender to dominate a field, however a female dominated field is light years more acceptable than a male dominated one.

The problem comes in actually practicing for male OB/GYN's. Not securing a residency.

There are shortages of OBGYNs. Males have no particular problems securing positions post residency. There are many negatives to this field, but the one you keep describing simply isn't one of them.

 

[Chuckwalla]

There are shortages of OBGYNs. Males have no particular problems securing positions post residency. There are many negatives to this field, but the one you keep describing simply isn't one of them.

It is not they have trouble securing a position, it is that have trouble securing a high quality position.

 

[Law2Doc]

It is not they have trouble securing a position, it is that have trouble securing a high quality position.

High quality is in the eye of the beholder. However I defy you to show any data (beyond the anecdotal "I know a guy") that male OBGYNs who graduated from US allo schools end up in less desirable places post residency than their female counterparts. It simply isn't an accurate statement, no matter how much you think it stands to reason.

 

[Chuckwalla]

High quality is in the eye of the beholder. However I defy you to show any data (beyond the anecdotal "I know a guy") that male OBGYNs who graduated from US allo schools end up in less desirable places post residency than their female counterparts. It simply isn't an accurate statement, no matter how much you think it stands to reason.

I posted that study that showed women prefer female OB/GYN's. Women overwhelmingly prefer female OB/GYN's. What are stated are very logical implications to this preference. If someone is hiring OB/GYN's and they come across a male and a female applicant with equal qualifications it is a better business decision to go with the female.

 

[LizzyM]

If a woman is looking for an OB-GYN and she has a choice of practitioners, she may prefer to make an appointment to see a female physician, even if the wait is longer (2 months rather than 3 weeks). If enough women vote with there feet, the female GYNs have full appointment books and the male physicians have open spots. When one looks at the amount of income the physicians bring in based on clinic volume, the woman gets the bonus and the man gets nothing extra. Eventually, the man has to move to an underserved area where there is no OB-GYN at all so no competition with a female provider.

If a group has an opening for one new associate, and if the group knows that a female will be booked with a 2 month wait within the first 6 months of practice whereas it will take man a year to build up a following, which new attending will be hired?

It is difficult to be a man in OB-Gyn these days unless it is in a area like Gynecologic Oncology where you need surgery and the gender of the surgeon doesn't much matter.

 

[Law2Doc]

I posted that study that showed women prefer female OB/GYN's. Women overwhelmingly prefer female OB/GYN's. What are stated are very logical implications to this preference. If someone is hiring OB/GYN's and they come across a male and a female applicant with equal qualifications it is a better business decision to go with the female.

That you find it logical doesn't mean it translates to actual hiring practices. Thus far it hasn't. Maybe someday. But actually there is an ample minority of women who prefer male obgyns who more than create a demand for the even smaller minority of male doctors going into the field these days.

 

[taponthecloud]

How weird is that for a male ob/gyn?

Very.

 

[physicsnerd42]

It's not weird at all for a man to go into ob/gyn. It is, however, more rare these days for a man to go into ob/gyn. Of the nine people from my school who matched ob/gyn this year, I'm pretty sure that all were women.

 

[riverwoman1040]

I posted that study that showed women prefer female OB/GYN's. Women overwhelmingly prefer female OB/GYN's. What are stated are very logical implications to this preference. If someone is hiring OB/GYN's and they come across a male and a female applicant with equal qualifications it is a better business decision to go with the female.

I could argue that because I have no gender preference (really, it's mildly weird either way, I don't care), I will chose the male doctor because I can get in sooner. This will become more of a factor as the shortage of OBGYN's increases and appointments have to be scheduled farther out. Therefore, for a certain proportion of the population the male OBGYN is more desirable, and he will never be out of work. Seems logical to me. Does that make it true? No. Is it true? I have no idea. If anyone wants to post some workforce stats this will be a valid discussion, otherwise it's somewhat akin to the flying spaghetti monster debate. Not that I don't love the flying spaghetti monster...