AMA VICDOC Autumn 2024 - Magazine - Page 71
FACTS
FE D FACTS, M A RC HF ED
8 , 2024
WHY IT'S
IMPORTANT
TO INVEST
IN WOMEN
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Extensive research shows having a greater diversity of people
in the workplace leads to better outcomes — in any industry.
is particularly important
D iversity
in leadership positions, where
women are sadly under-represented
in the healthcare profession.
Despite making up 75 per cent of the
healthcare industry workforce, women
hold 45 per cent of public hospital board
positions, 39 per cent of private hospital
chief executive roles and 38 per cent of
chief medical or health officers at state,
territory and federal levels.
Female specialists also earn 16.6 per
cent less than their male counterparts,
while female GPs earn 25 per cent less
than male GPs on average.
The theme of this year’s International
Women’s Day is: “Count Her In: Invest
in Women. Accelerate Progress”.
It recognises “when women are given
equal opportunities to earn, learn and
lead — entire communities thrive”.
The thing I like about this theme is
that it places importance on inclusion
and equal opportunity for females in
all stages of their life.
Young girls must have equal access to
education, and women must be given
every opportunity to progress in their
profession and take on those allimportant leadership positions.
A more diverse leadership can go a long
way in addressing many challenges in
medicine, including bullying and harassment
and issues with training and supervision.
Many women are all too familiar with
the myriad barriers preventing them
from progressing in their medical careers.
They know medicine can be akin to a
treadmill and there’s this fear that if you
jump off the treadmill, it’s very hard to
get back on where you stepped off.
That is why the AMA works hard
developing policy proposals that create
greater flexibility in medical workplaces
and training environments. We need to
build a culture of flexibility in medicine
where people can do a variety of things,
whether it’s raising children or pursuing
further education, and still come back to
leadership roles.
VI CD O C AUTU M N 2024
71
