Differences in the annual incomes of emergency physicians related to gender

Abstract

Objectives: To examine the association between physician gender and income for emergency physicians (EPs) after correcting for factors likely to influence income.

Methods: The authors used survey responses collected during the 1990s from 392 actively practicing white EPs. Linear regression modeling was used to determine the association between provider gender and annual income after controlling for workload, provider characteristics, and practice characteristics.

Results: White female EPs reported seeing 7% fewer visits but worked 3% more annual hours than their white male counterparts. White female EPs had practiced medicine for fewer years than white male EPs, although the distribution of respondents across categories of years practicing medicine was not dramatically different. Female EPs were more likely to be employees, as opposed to having an ownership interest in the practice. Female EPs were less likely than their male counterparts to be board certified. After adjustment for work effort, provider characteristics, and practice characteristics, the mean annual income of white female EPs was $193,570, or $47,854 (20%) lower than that for white male EPs (95% confidence interval = -$82,710 to -$12,997; p = 0.007).

Conclusions: During the 1990s, female gender was associated with lower annual income among EPs. These findings warrant further exploration to determine what factors might cause the gender-based differences in income that were found.