Gastroenterology Department, Liaquat National Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Gastroenterology Department, Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre, Karachi, Pakistan.
Gastrointest Endosc. 2021 Dec;94(6):1110-1115. doi: 10.1016/j.gie.2021.06.030. Epub 2021 Jul 3.
Patient preference for a healthcare professional is mediated by physician gender. The primary aim of this study was to assess gender preference for an endoscopist in a cohort of Muslim patients. The secondary aim was to identify factors that influence gender preference.
This was a multicenter cross-sectional study conducted at 3 tertiary care hospitals in Pakistan. Consecutive patients scheduled for elective outpatient upper endoscopy or colonoscopy were asked to complete a questionnaire immediately before and after the procedure. Data collected included patient demographics, occupation, education level, procedure type, gender preference, and reason for preference.
A total of 1078 patients completed the questionnaire (age 43.5 ± 15.8 years; 53.2% men). Upper endoscopy was the most frequent procedure, performed in 84% of patients. Gender preference was expressed by 707 patients (65.6%), of which 511 (72.3%) were willing to wait for an average of 7 days for an endoscopist of the preferred gender. Male patients' preferences (45.1% male endoscopist, 17.1% female endoscopist, 37.8% no preference) differed from female participants' (16.9% male endoscopist, 52.6% female endoscopist, and 30.5% no preference; P < .00001). No education was associated with having a gender preference (odds ratio, .55; 95% confidence interval, .37-.81; P = .003). Reasons for gender preference included religious values and family pressure, which were more frequently expressed by women (P < .0001).
Most Muslims in Pakistan expressed a gender preference, and both female and male patients showed a preference for a same-gender endoscopist. No education was associated with having a gender preference.
患者对医疗保健专业人员的偏好受医生性别的影响。本研究的主要目的是评估穆斯林患者队列中对内镜医师的性别偏好。次要目的是确定影响性别偏好的因素。
这是一项在巴基斯坦 3 家三级保健医院进行的多中心横断面研究。连续预约择期门诊上消化道内镜或结肠镜检查的患者在检查前后立即完成一份问卷。收集的数据包括患者人口统计学特征、职业、教育程度、检查类型、性别偏好和偏好原因。
共有 1078 名患者完成了问卷（年龄 43.5±15.8 岁；53.2%为男性）。上消化道内镜检查最为常见，占 84%的患者。707 名患者（65.6%）表达了性别偏好，其中 511 名（72.3%）愿意平均等待 7 天以接受偏好的性别内镜医师进行检查。男性患者的偏好（45.1%男性内镜医师、17.1%女性内镜医师、37.8%无偏好）与女性参与者的偏好不同（16.9%男性内镜医师、52.6%女性内镜医师和 30.5%无偏好；P<0.00001）。未受教育与性别偏好有关（优势比，0.55；95%置信区间，0.37-0.81；P=0.003）。性别偏好的原因包括宗教价值观和家庭压力，这些原因在女性中更为常见（P<0.0001）。
巴基斯坦的大多数穆斯林表示有性别偏好，女性和男性患者都表现出对同性内镜医师的偏好。未受教育与性别偏好有关。
