Women doctors and their careers: what now?

Published as supplied by the author

Views of specialist registrars in focus groups

Most SpRs wanted more established part-time training posts, more flexible working patterns and more on-site nurseries and childcare facilities. They were more critical than the consultants about poor support services and unsatisfactory working conditions. They dismissed questions of whether more women in the medical profession would lead to a loss of professional status since they regarded themselves as equal to, if not better than, male doctors. However, most had chosen specialties which offered a good work-life balance:

‘Radiology is more sessional. On-calls are off-site. An awful lot of women are radiologists. The training is well-organised. It’s got a good reputation for being more family friendly – more compassionate to women.’

‘In paediatrics I work in an unbelievably child-friendly environment. Everybody is very sensitive and almost everyone you work with has children, and, if anything, it improves your professional standing as a paediatrician.’

A surgical registrar who loved her job sometimes had regrets about her choice of specialty: ‘I look at friends who took a different course and are now GPs and are delighted with their lifestyle. They get more money and less hours and they’re having a lovely time.’