WPC Member Survey Results

Membership in the Women Physicians Congress (WPC) provides an opportunity for physicians and medical students to influence national policies and advocacy on women in medicine professional concerns and women's health issues. If you are not already an AMA-WPC member  join the AMA today.

Thank you for participating in this year's member survey- your opinions are important to the WPC in achieving our goals and shaping the future.

Here is what you told us about women in medicine today:

Professional Issues in Medicine

More than forty percent of WPC members have experienced income disparity during their professional career.

• Fifty-five percent of WPC members providing patient care compared with 38% of WPC members not providing patient care have experienced income disparity.
  
• Sixty-three percent of WPC members 40 years of age or more compared with 28% of WPC members less than 40 years of age have experienced income disparity.

More than one-third of WPC members have experienced lack of promotion opportunities during their professional career.

• Forty-nine percent of WPC members 40 years of age or more compared with 26% of WPC members less than 40 years of age have experienced lack of promotion opportunities.
  
• As years in practice increases so does the likelihood of experiencing lack of promotion opportunities (less than 5 years in practice, 27%; 5-20 years in practice, 55%; 21 or more years in practice, 71%.
• Fifty-three percent of WPC members who are IMGs compared with 38% of WPC members who are US medical graduates have experienced lack of promotion opportunities.

One-half (49%) of WPC members have experienced sexual harassment during their professional careers.

A majority of the WPC members state that the professional climate has improved very much or somewhat for female physicians since the time when they entered medical school.

• Eighty-two percent of WPC members 40 years of age or more compared with 54% of WPC members less than 40 years of age report that the professional climate has improved very much or somewhat for female physicians.
  
• As years in practice increases so does the percentage of WPC members believing that the professional climate has improved very much or somewhat for female physicians (less than 5 years in practice, 57%; 5-20 years in practice, 78%; 21 or more years in practice, 85%).
  
• WPC members who are married (77%) are more likely than WPC members who are not married (61%) to state that the professional climate has improved very much or somewhat for female physicians.
  
• WPC members who are owners/partners of the practice (84%) are more likely than WPC members who are employees (65%) to think that the professional climate has improved very much or somewhat for female physicians.

Membership in the AMA Women Physicians Congress

More than 25% of WPC members first learned about the WPC from AMA publications, 17% of WPC members first learned abut the WPC from the AMA membership information packet, 13% of WPC members first learned about the WPC from an e-mail and 13% of WPC members first learned about the WPC from direct mail.

Twenty-eight precent of WPC members have visited the Women Physicians Congress section of the AMA's Web site. A majority of the WPC members who have visited find the information in this section of the AMA's Web site to be very or somewhat useful. Most (85%) WPC members visit this section of the AMA's Web site once a month or less.

• Medical students (37%) are more likely than residents (20%) and physicians (25%) to have visited the Women Physicians Congress section of the AMA's Web site.

Fifteen percent of WPC members have attended one or more of the annual WPC Women Physician Leaders Summits.

A majority (86%) are very or somewhat satisfied with their WPC membership.

One-half (51%) of WPC members currently receive the monthly WPC e-mail bulletins. A majority (93%) are very or somewhat satisfied with the content of the monthly WPC e-mail bulletins.

The two most effective methods of communicating information about WPC activities to members on a regular basis are WPC exclusive e-mail updates (79%) and print/mailed WPC newsletters (72%). Most WPC members would like to receive WPC update e-mails monthly (60%). Most WPC would like to receive print/mailed WPC newsletters monthly (55%).

• Medical students (94%) and residents (91%) are more likely than physicians (75%) to believe exclusive e-mails updates is an effective method of communicating information about WPC activities to members.

More than 60% of WPC members would also like to learn about general AMA activities through their WPC communications.

A majority of WPC members believe the following AMA activities and services are very valuable: legislative advocacy (70%), and scientfic publications (61%).

A majority of WPC members think that the WPC should concentrate its efforts and budget resources on the following areas: leadership development, education and training (62%), and increasing the number/percentage of women leaders in organized medicine (55%).

More than 33% of WPC members would like significant involvement in voting on WPC issues and future policies.

Practice Information

Thirty-seven percent of WPC members are now or have worked part-time as a physician. The main reason for working part-time is raising children (59%). WPC members indicate that the following are very significant barriers that might prevent female physicians from working part-time:

• loss of benefits (70%),
• loss of income (55%),
• and lack of opportunities to work part-time in the specialty (52%).