Is there sexism in America's medical system?

[RandySF]

Three years ago, my wife was VERY sick. One morning, she called me as I just arrived to work one morning telling me she needed to go to see a doctor right away and she needed me with her. I literally pivoted talked out the door and told my boss as he was walking in. I get home, take her to the Dr.'s office. They examine her, listened to her breathing real quick, and sent her home, telling her she had a cold or flu and instructed her to rest and take fluids. The next day she was worse and I had to take her to the ER. Literally dehydrated, they gave her and IV drip and took an x-ray, but pretty much told her the same thing. Two days later, she was gravely ill. I took her to ER YET AGAIN. only this time I got in the Dr.'s face right away. Maybe I didn't need to because he seemed to actually know what he was doing. took MORE THAN ONE x-ray shot and saw that she had full-blown pneumonia. He gave her another IV drip, a prescription plus instructions tot take Mucinex and told her to schedule a follow-up with her usual Dr.

Fast-forward to late last night. For the past three days, I had been fighting a fever and a throat the felt like I had swallowed razor-wire. I already scheduled an appointment today but I began vomited and was literately fading n an out as I was supposed to be watching my kid. The wife came home from her late shift and told me to just go to ER. I was hesitant, remembering what she went through, but I went anyway not bearing the idea going through a night of this. So, I o in and when the Dr. saw me, she took me seriously (and if you saw my wife three years ago, you would see I was not nearly as sick), ordered some tests and prescribed an anti-biotic, a pill for the nausea, ibuprofen, and gave me a shot to immediately ease the soreness. I didn't ask for anything. I didn't get in anybody's face but the moment I got there, I was treated differently. Keep in mind also that we have had the same insurance plans for over the entire course of time.

My question is this: Did I just get lucky and went when there was good DR. on staff? Was I treated differently because, as a male, I was seen as more likely to be insistent? Is there a subtle sexism in America's ER? Is there sexism in our medical system in general?

[LaydeeBug]

1. is the Pope Catholic? Does a bear... nt

welcome to DU

[cutlassmama]

2. Generally, men are more reluctant to go see a doctor. Therefore, when

they present with illness it is usually taken more seriously.

[BlooInBloo]

3. There's sexism in every American system.

[RC]

5. Including Marriage.

[Warpy]

4. There is blatant sexism all through the system, at every single level

Women with heart disease are more likely to be diagnosed as neurotic and sent home with Valium than get the same workup a male with the same symptoms gets.

Women are generally seen as less reliable in describing their symptoms and as presenting with far less serious symptoms, even when their symptoms are the same as a man being taken very seriously in the next room.

Many drugs are never tested on women and it's simply assumed both sexes react the same. This hasn't been true for many medications, but the testing models haven't changed.

Don't get me started on the mammogram apparatus.

Nurse practitioners with 6 years of medical education get less pay than Physician Assistants with 2 years of medical education simply because the NP is assumed to be a woman and is from a profession dominated by women.

It just goes on and on and on. It's killing women, too.

[Skittles]

8. CORRECT

[county worker]

6. My two experiences and I am male.

I rarely go to the doctor. I mean it is years between my doctor visits except for my mental illness meds.

I had been feeling chest pains and called the doctor, they told me if I could drive to come in right away and if I could not drive have someone drive me. They canceled all the other patients for that afternoon. Gave me all kinds of tests all afternoon. I was OK.

Last year the same thing, I went to the ER, I got all kinds of tests instantly, no waiting, EKG, CAT Scan, ex-rays etc. I'm still OK.

You mean my wife would be treated differently?

[LiberalLoner]

7. Bwah ha ha ha OMG YES freaking YES rop

Not only everything everyone here has said, but women get treated for pain MUCH less often than men. Women are treated like CRAP by the medical system much of the time.

[Shell Beau]

9. There is sexism everywhere. Even unintentional sexism.

I am lucky to have a good relationhsip with my doctor, and he takes me very seriously. I am sorry for your wife's experience.

[w8liftinglady]

10. I was told I was "depressed"-2 yr later,I'm having brain surgery

fortunately,I got a new IM doc who referred me to a new neurologist-yes-there is sexism.

[BrklynLiberal]

11. In a word...YES.

http://www.jstor.org/pss/3346531

SEXISM IN WOMEN'S HEALTHCARE


http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=515646

[SocialistLez]

12. It isn't just sexism. It's racism, heterosexism, etc.

Why wouldn't the rest of American society NOT impact our medical system?

[uppityperson]

13. Of course there is BUT it could also be luck with a decent doctor. BOth happen.

Different docs are different in what they do, but yes, there is sexism in the system also.

Even get to the level of names, Doctors (traditionally male) are DrWhoseit, while Nurses (traditionally female) are Gwen or George.

[tavalon]

15. Amen.

[tavalon]

14. Women are and always have been treated poorly by the medical establishment

The sexism is hardly subtle.

[DefenseLawyer]

16. Perhaps, but it's nothing for them to worry their pretty little heads over n/t

[HipChick]

17. my mother had abdominal pain...

the dr told her it was just fat..she said that she could definitely feel a lump...she was sent home. 8 months later,they pulled a 9lb cyst out of her..

[spinbaby]

20. Sounds familiar

I was told for years that my symptoms were just perfectly normal at my age before they diagnosed a fibroid tumor the size of a cantaloupe.

[laughingliberal]

18. Absolutely! nt

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

19. This is going to sound like a joke....

But it's only comparatively recently that researchers have hit upon the notion that women are biologically different than men. For YEARS, the characteristics of men were just considered the norm with regard to human physiology and treatments were delivered accordingly.

Now that being said, it shounds like the first two doc's you met with regard to your wife were probably a) incompetent or b) over-work and sleep-deprived residents doing ED rotation. To be fair, I don't think there is a sexist bias in the delivery of care -- look around the ED and you'll see that most of the caregivers there are women. I do think that how we treat women (the actual protocols) are evolving.

[Odin2005]

21. Yep. Women with problems are often dismissed as "hysterical", according to my mom.

[AwakeAtLast]

22. Breast cancert drugs are not usually tested on women

That is beginning to change, but if that doesn't answer your question, nothing will.

[LeftyMom]

23. Oh my god, you have no idea.

Here's my personal favorite example: EVERY time I go to a doctor, I get asked if I'm pregnant, and when I say no, if I'm sure. EVERY TIME I explain that I'm sure, because I know how that happens, and it's been (however long, not this cycle in any case.)

Fully half of the time, I get told to give a urine sample for something else, then told later as they run down my results that I'm not pregnant.

And none of this has ever been before administering a medication or procedure that would be precluded in or dangerous in a pregnancy, I'd understand a little CYA then. But I'm 29, and apparently I can't be trusted to know how babies get made or to honestly report if I've done that lately, and pregnancy testing me while saying one is testing for something else is totally okay. :eyes:

[Kitty Herder]

24. Absolutely.

And no, it's not subtle.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

25. Yes, esp. with undertreated and untreated disorders common to women.

Autoimmune diseases.

Hypothyroidism. Adrenal exhaustion. Millions of women have dead thyroids and have argued with their doctors for decades for proper treatment (www.stopthethyroidmadness.com)

Heart disease (different presentation of symptoms).

If you're tired and fatigued, they just give you antidepressants instead of finding out why your thyroid croaked years ago and your adrenals, and probably a couple of other systems, and why all that stress had you to the point where you just almost don't give a damn anymore.

My mom's generation got hooked on tranks. The first one was Miltown, then it was valium and others, and then heavy duty stuff that they don't hand out anymore. I guess the suburban housewives would have gone out and rioted or something if they hadn't been quiet.

As a result, my mother was pretty damn nonfunctional from the time I was about 15 years old.
Betty Friedan brought the frustrated housewife to our attention with "The Feminine Mystique" but didn't get into the medical profession's treatment of this and how restricted these women were.

=============

[Manifestor_of_Light]

26. I got a four count horror story for you.

Sexism, racism, classism, ageism all in ONE case.

A little old black lady I know is on welfare & medicare and medicaid. She is in her seventies. Her sister has been a friend of my family for forty years.

She went to the local elderly white male doctor. She was dizzy, confused, disoriented and her family was worried about her.

Dr. Small Town Dominant Male, about 75 years old, told her she needed to see a psychiatrist, that she had mental problems. No physical problems, though.

She kept feeling worse and worse. Her family was frantic. They called all over the State of Texas trying to find help for a person on welfare.

They finally talked to someone at John Sealy Hospital in Galveston. They had to drive 200 miles and take her there.

A young woman doctor examined the lady and said, "I don't know what doctor this lady has been to, but he must have been young and inexperienced. He didn't examine her properly".

As it turned out, this woman doctor examined the lady and found blood clots in her retinas. She was having CEREBRAL STROKES, nearly every day, and this old white man didn't give enough of a damn about a little old black lady on welfare to examine her eyes properly.

I wouldn't take my dog to that bastard. BTW he has an amusing nickname that starts with "Killer".

:banghead: :banghead: :grr: