Gender in the PA Profession (Undergrad Assignment Help??)

[malager]

Hello!   I'm sure all of you are very busy and have much better things to do than help a student out with their homework, but if it would be possible to have a minute or two of your time I would appreciate it to no end.  I am a pre-PA undergrad student, and my gender studies class has been tasked with an assignment regarding our future professions.  We were given a few questions to ask some people who are currently in that profession regarding the impact of gender on their professional lives.  This is obviously where I need help!  All I need is for someone to answer the following questions.

 

These questions include:  How did you first become interested in the PA Profession?  How does gender affect your work and career path?  Do you work mostly with men or women?  Do you find that your daily interactions are affected by gender, either by yours or your patients'?  Would you give different advice to a male and female interested in medical professions?  Any other comments or thoughts on the subject of gender in your workplace?

 

Thank you for taking the time to read this and I look forward to your responses!

[UGoLong]

These questions include:  

 

How did you first become interested in the PA Profession?  Later in life, after years of volunteer and part-time paid work as an EMT and later as a paramedic.

 

How does gender affect your work and career path?  I'm male and have not found that has adversely affected my career path.

 

Do you work mostly with men or women?  I work mostly with women. 75% of our staff is female and about 60-70% of our patients.

 

Do you find that your daily interactions are affected by gender, either by yours or your patients'?  I haven't had issues with either male or female patients, but some of that is that I am about the same age. I have seen several good PAs thought of as nurses (and me as the doctor!) strictly because they were young and female. That's unfortunate.

 

Would you give different advice to a male and female interested in medical professions?  The career is fine for either gender, however I think that women still have stereotypes to overcome, especially in dealing with nursing staff and patients. Unfortunately, they are still judged on how professionally they dress, their bearing, and speech, Some assertiveness is also needed in dealing with difficult people, as is the ability to hide some emotions in difficult situations.

 

Any other comments or thoughts on the subject of gender in your workplace? Good luck!

[Guest Paula]

1.  I became interested in the profession when I met a few PAs working on the reservation.  I was a dietitian at the time and my WIC clients thought I was a nurse.  Since I didn't know how to answer some of their medical related questions, I decided to go back to school to become a PA.

 

2. I am female.  I do not feel that gender has affected my career path in a negative way.  I am paid a very good salary and insisted I get paid what I am worth. 

 

3. I work mostly with women and it really sucks.  We are petty and get into cat-fights.  With men, you just have words and it is over.  Or a fist fight, I guess.  

 

4. There are times I feel a little unsafe with some of my male patients who have a history of psychiatric and addiction issues.  Have had to call the cops for belligerent patients. These patients do not seem to act the same way with the male physician at our clinic. I am older, too so I think my age helps me.  

 

5.  See UGoLongs reply.  I agree with his assessment.  

[malager]

Many thanks to both of you, UGoLong and Paula!  I greatly appreciate you two helping me out, and the interesting answers you have provided (I think I am going to explore the stereotype issue and the differing reactions by patients to different gendered providers a bit further in-depth).  Thanks again!!

[whoRyou]

Interesting questions and responses ...

[BruceBanner]

How did you first become interested in the PA Profession?  I had a strong interest in science and physiology. I did some work as an EMT and wanted a professional career with good income/job prospects.

 

How does gender affect your work and career path?  I'm male and have not found that has adversely affected my career path either. Being male did help me get IN to school, where 3/4 of all applicants were female.

 

Do you work mostly with men or women?  I work with about 50% men and 50% women in terms of providers. Most of our support staff (MAs, admin asst, billing) are female.

 

Do you find that your daily interactions are affected by gender, either by yours or your patients'? Yes and no. As a man most patients think I am a "doctor", and I tend to get a little more respect from patients than my female colleagues. On the down side, I find that women in the workplace (and in general if I'm honest) do not take criticism well, and in most companies there is an HR "culture" that tends to favor women. As a man there are certain things I cannot say--even if it is an honest criticism about the workplace--for fear of being reprimanded or losing my job due to being seen as a "misogynist" or insensitive. For example, we have several breastfeeding women in the office. They have been seen washing their breast pumps off in the kitchen sink, where we all prepare our food. Bodily fluids in the kitchen are clearly a legitimate health concern, but I wouldn't dare bring that up because it isn't worth the risk of being seen as the "mean woman hater" guy in the office. I have a male colleague who had had his job threatened for a casual joke that was misunderstood. It may sound like sour grapes, but when a man can lose his job because a woman was "offended", things have gotten out of balance.

 

Would you give different advice to a male and female interested in medical professions?  Not really. It is a profession suitable for both genders, but I think men tend to gravitate towards more technical, procedure-oriented specialties. To be honest I think there is a reason most PA students and grads these days are women. It is better suited for them. They can shift their attention faster (aka multitasking), they are more patient with people issues, and they somewhat enjoy being "needed". 

 

Any other comments or thoughts on the subject of gender in your workplace? My caution to men would be that MOST office and corporate cultures tend to favor women. Especially if HR staff is primarily female. Nursing culture in major hospitals can be militant---and they are predominantly female. As a man, when you work in a predominantly female workplace you just learn that you have to pick your battles wisely. At the end of the day you need to keep your job. It isn't fair, but life isn't fair. You just have to get better at playing the game.

[Guest Paula]

^^^^^^ I've seen this play out with men having to be careful of what and how they say things.  Women can bash men and get away with it.  Not fair to men at all.