For eons, doctors and healers have been held up as the superheroes that treat and alleviate our pain while curing our diseases. They are noble people who save lives, and conventionally they have been paid substantially to do so as well. Also, suppose the salary is not a motivating and driving factor. In that case, it is certainly not a surprising fact that several idealistic young people want to give back to humanity in particularly a noble and grand way.
However, this utopianism is inclined to waver somewhat for several prospective physicians as they move through the hardships of medical school along with the manic demands of the internship and residency. And those who survive these tedious hurdles have a new set of challenges and obstacles to tackle in the real world.
The number of women in medicine today is certainly catching up to that of men. However, female physicians are yet in the minority in terms of positions of power. Female physicians generally undergo a greater struggle to reach the highest positions in the academic portion of medicine.
One of the most common reasons for the disparities between the sexes in academic medicine is the fact that female physicians, in comparison to their male counterparts, have a much lower rate of scientific publishing that forms a crucial factor affecting and negatively impacting promotion in academic medicine. Clinical physicians work in an environment that is more often than not extremely stressful, and this extends to which they may control their work conditions that might vary.
Here are some key challenges that cause physicians to shy away from publishing their work includes:
- Lack of time: Surgeons and physicians, as mentioned earlier, work under the harshest conditions. The pressure and the intense atmosphere are constant in their line of work. They often do not find the time to complete their research or complete the formalities of publishing their work. It is seen that most people always push aside the publishing part to make time to save lives. In most cases, the issue is linked to the problem of bureaucracies and other healthcare system challenges and hurdles. It is also important to understand the larger picture that comprises an array of factors that include regulatory problems, expectations of medicine, as well as the frantic pace of this growing and developing modern-day life. Government rules and regulations and the everyday hassles of running a business tend to force physicians to spend less time with patients. The stakes are so immaculately high – with their very careers on the line that they cause today’s healers to overthink and analyze before jumping through every hoop that is put in their way.
- Bureaucratic and flawed healthcare systems: Several problems are inevitable as doctors and their staff struggle to adjust and to segregate the uncertainties concerning the ways the new law shall negatively impact the quality of patient care. Physicians are prone to worry and be concerned about how these laws will impact their practices, economically as well as otherwise. Despite the fact that the sole purpose behind these changing laws is supposed to benefit patients, the reality is that adopting and getting accustomed to new government mandates, struggling with new technologies, or even learning to navigate new payment processes can detract from their sole mission to cure medical illnesses.
The ACA or the Affordable Care Act in the United States is one such law that is not the only source of frustrations for the healers with bureaucracies but also with other programs like pharmacy benefit plans. All of this causes delays and unnecessary issues in publishing their work. It draws focus away from the important ideology of curing every form of disease ever.
- Lack of work-life balance: Initially, this might look like personal problems at first glance; however, they can severely affect a physician’s performance. Nonetheless, the advantages that come with any position of respect or authority, being a doctor has always been stressful. After all, the stake of people’s lives relies on the hands of a doctor. They, however, face a confluence of problems that make their line of work particularly stressful.
The worst news in this regard is that doctors have a higher than average rate of suicide, more than likely than untreated depression. In the US, the suicide rate among female doctors is approximately 2.3 times the national average, and the suicide rate among male doctors is about 1.4 times higher. Doctors also have a higher than average rate of drug abuse and alcoholism.
This adversely affects the world of publishing and research.
- Discrimination: Despite being in the modern age and world, discrimination is not completely gone. Most today, however, frown upon it, yet it is not completely gone. This causes several physicians to shy away from publishing their work. Discrimination can be seen in all forms that vary from the smallest to the largest of proportions based on geography and region. It could be gender discrimination or even based on other factors like race, caste, creed, etc. This form of differentiation instills a form of lack of confidence and fear in the physicians. The lack of government policies over these forms of issues also plays a major role in the lack of publishing. This is actually one of the most controversial barriers that can be seen in the world of medical academia.
The above facts are not intended to discourage any enthusiastic or qualified doctors and physicians from trying to publish their work. On the contrary: the world shall continue to follow the same if the light is not shed on the hurdles and obstacles. Doctors shall continue to make positive contributions, so the desire to serve humanity is both noble and reasonable. The key for a prospective doctor is to manage their expectations by acknowledging the challenges that are associated with the role.
References:
- https://www.elsevier.com/connect/authors-update/how-to-overcome-common-obstacles-to-publishing-in-english
- http://www.doiserbia.nb.rs/img/doi/0354-7310/2003/0354-73100302059M.pdf
- https://bmcmedethics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12910-016-0091-7
- https://www.prospectivedoctor.com/5-key-challenges-for-a-doctor-serving-humanity/
- https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-015-0347-9