12/01/2023

Friends of Franz Podcast S3 E1: 16 Minutes and More with Dr. Michelle Rockwell (Doctor Mommy, MD)

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), medicine remains male-dominated, with women physicians making up only 37.1% of the workforce in 2021. However, a study that same year released by The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that women are 32% more likely to die post-operatively if their surgeon was a man, relaying better health outcomes for both male and female patients with female surgeons. This echoes a 2017 JAMA study outside the surgical domain that also showed lower mortality and hospital readmission rates with care by female physicians. Additionally, according to a 2002 JAMA systematic review, 50% of women physicians are likely to spend 16 minutes or more with their patients compared to 42% of male physicians. Despite these studies favoring female-led care, so much gender bias and stigma still exist in the healthcare sphere. Recorded back in February during National Women Physicians Day, it was just fitting that this episode tackled the realities in the field of medicine that have been longstanding since its conception in the United States: patriarchy, sexism, pay gaps, and glass ceilings.

I am beyond delighted to commence this season with my dear friend, double-board certified Family Medicine and Sports Medicine physician, and mother, Dr. Michelle "Shelly" Rockwell. In 2017, she founded and currently stands as the CEO of The Doctor Mommy Group PLC, which serves as a community to help new mothers navigate the first year of motherhood.