GITNUXREPORT 2026

Gender Inequality In Healthcare Statistics

Sexual harassment and burnout are only part of the picture. In the latest trends, women physicians report sexual harassment at 34% versus 19% for men and burnout symptoms are up to 36% overall by 2023, while women also face persistent pay and clinical care gaps that shape everything from leadership representation to who gets sex-specific treatment and timely diagnoses.

50 statistics50 sources5 sections9 min readUpdated 12 days ago

Statistic 1

34% of women physicians reported experiencing sexual harassment compared with 19% of men physicians (past year)

Statistic 2

41.8% of new U.S. medical school enrollment in 2023 were women

Statistic 3

24% of U.S. physicians reported having experienced burnout symptoms in 2018, rising to 36% by 2023; women were more likely to report burnout symptoms (38% in 2023) than men (34% in 2023)

Statistic 4

In the U.S., women comprised 64% of physician assistants in 2020

Statistic 5

Women accounted for 28% of practicing orthopedic surgeons in the U.S. in 2023

Statistic 6

In U.S. academic medicine in 2022, women were 26% of deans and senior vice presidents

Statistic 7

In OECD countries, women make up about 69% of nurses but only about 30% of top leadership roles in health care systems (2019 estimate)

Statistic 8

In the U.S., women were 42% of the medical faculty in 2022 but 24% of full professors

Statistic 9

In 2023, women held 19% of the CEO roles in Fortune 500 health care companies

Statistic 10

Women represent 33% of investigators in clinical research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) (2018-2022 data)

Statistic 11

NIH reported that women were 44% of principal investigators on research grants in FY 2022

Statistic 12

Women were 48% of NIH-funded investigators in 2022 but underrepresented among top leadership roles, per NIH dashboards

Statistic 13

Women represent 31% of anesthesia physicians in the U.S. in 2023 (AAMC workforce data)

Statistic 14

Women physicians earn 93 cents for every dollar earned by men physicians on average in the U.S.

Statistic 15

A 2023 peer-reviewed study found that women physicians had 19% lower odds of receiving additional compensation than men in U.S. health systems

Statistic 16

In Germany, the gender pay gap across health and social work activities was 11.7% in 2022 (unadjusted)

Statistic 17

In 2021, the World Economic Forum estimated the global healthcare and social sector gender pay gap at 12.6% for the same work

Statistic 18

In a 2020 analysis of U.S. hospital leadership pay, women were paid 13.4% less than men for comparable leadership roles

Statistic 19

A 2019 study in the Journal of Women's Health found that women in academic medicine were 14% less likely to negotiate salary and had lower starting offers by $6,000 on average

Statistic 20

Women pharmacists in the U.S. earned a median of $124,670 in 2022 vs. $134,460 for men, a gap of about 7.3%

Statistic 21

Women physical therapists in the U.S. earned a median of $97,720 in 2022 vs. $102,920 for men, a gap of about 5.1%

Statistic 22

Women registered nurses in the U.S. earned median annual pay of $86,070 in 2022 vs. $91,840 for men, a gap of about 6.3%

Statistic 23

Women nurse practitioners in the U.S. earned median pay of $124,680 in 2022 vs. $130,830 for men, a gap of about 4.7%

Statistic 24

In a systematic review, women were underrepresented in clinical trials: 46% of trials failed to report sex-specific analyses (2019)

Statistic 25

In randomized clinical trials across medicine, only 39% analyzed sex differences explicitly, according to a 2019 peer-reviewed review

Statistic 26

Women are less likely than men to be enrolled in clinical trials for cardiovascular diseases (meta-analysis estimate: 1.22 odds ratio favoring men enrollment)

Statistic 27

A 2020 study reported that women represented 38% of participants in randomized clinical trials published in major journals from 2017-2019

Statistic 28

A 2021 review found that only 20% of clinical trials in stroke reported sex-stratified results

Statistic 29

A 2022 study found that women were 30% less likely to be included in trials for musculoskeletal diseases compared with population sex distributions

Statistic 30

The U.S. FDA reported that 53% of new drug applications approved in 2018 included sex-stratified analysis plans (review of labels and clinical data)

Statistic 31

In 2020, only 21% of cardiovascular trials published sex-stratified efficacy outcomes (systematic review)

Statistic 32

Women are less likely to receive guideline-concordant care: 22% lower odds of receiving recommended diagnostic tests in emergency presentations for heart attacks (observational study)

Statistic 33

In U.S. Medicare data, women with acute myocardial infarction were 11% less likely to undergo coronary angiography than men (2015-2019)

Statistic 34

A large cohort study found women had 13% lower odds of receiving thrombolysis for ischemic stroke than men

Statistic 35

In cancer care, women receive radiation therapy later than men in 44% of comparable cases (delay observed in population study)

Statistic 36

Women have 9-12% lower survival in several cancers when adjusted for stage in observational analyses; one meta-analysis quantified this at 10% on average (2018)

Statistic 37

In a 2021 JAMA Network Open study, women with breast cancer were 15% less likely to participate in clinical trials than men with non-breast cancers (observational)

Statistic 38

In U.S. National Cancer Institute SEER data, women with lung cancer had 8% lower odds of receiving surgery than men after adjusting for stage (study analysis)

Statistic 39

A 2020 systematic review found 24% of studies reported sex as a variable in study design

Statistic 40

A 2019 cross-sectional study of preclinical research found 22% reported sex as an experimental variable

Statistic 41

Women spend more time in pain and are underdiagnosed: in a 2020 meta-analysis, women reported pain more often (standardized mean difference 0.28) and received less adequate treatment

Statistic 42

In a U.S. survey of pain management, 54% of women reported being dismissed compared with 40% of men (2019 survey)

Statistic 43

In the WHO World Health Statistics 2023, women had higher burden of noncommunicable diseases measured in DALYs, and some NCD categories show persistent sex differences (report contains sex-disaggregated DALY tables)

Statistic 44

In the U.S., maternal mortality increased from 17.4 deaths per 100,000 live births (2019) to 23.8 (2021)

Statistic 45

In the U.S., maternal mortality was 22.0 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2022 (NCHS data)

Statistic 46

In the UK, 6.5% of women reported an unmet need for medical care in 2022 (OECD), compared with 5.1% of men

Statistic 47

In the U.S. BRFSS data (2019), 8.3% of women reported not having received needed medical care due to cost compared with 6.7% of men

Statistic 48

Women are 14% less likely than men to receive timely care for acute conditions in a multi-country analysis; systematic review quantified a pooled risk ratio of 0.86

Statistic 49

In a 2022 systematic review, women had a 12% higher risk of being diagnosed later for cardiovascular disease compared with men (pooled relative risk 1.12)

Statistic 50

Women are less likely to seek mental health care: 19.1% of women reported unmet needs in mental health compared with 14.7% of men in a 2021 analysis of WHO data

1/50

Sources

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Written by Min-ji Park·Fact-checked by Rajesh Patel

Published Feb 13, 2026·Last verified May 11, 2026·Next review: Nov 2026

Fact-checked via 4-step process— how we build this report

01Primary Source Collection

Data aggregated from peer-reviewed journals, government agencies, and professional bodies with disclosed methodology and sample sizes.

02Editorial Curation

Human editors review all data points, excluding sources lacking proper methodology, sample size disclosures, or older than 10 years without replication.

03AI-Powered Verification

Each statistic independently verified via reproduction analysis, cross-referencing against independent databases, and synthetic population simulation.

04Human Cross-Check

Final human editorial review of all AI-verified statistics. Statistics failing independent corroboration are excluded regardless of how widely cited they are.

Read our full methodology →

Statistics that fail independent corroboration are excluded.

Healthcare leadership and clinical culture can look equal on paper while outcomes and workplace experience still split sharply by gender. Women in 2023 medical education made up 41.8% of new U.S. enrollment, yet that same year burnout symptoms hit 38% of women versus 34% of men. We compiled statistics across pay, promotion, harassment, care delivery, clinical trial inclusion, and health outcomes to show where gaps persist and where they change.

Key Takeaways

34% of women physicians reported experiencing sexual harassment compared with 19% of men physicians (past year)
41.8% of new U.S. medical school enrollment in 2023 were women
24% of U.S. physicians reported having experienced burnout symptoms in 2018, rising to 36% by 2023; women were more likely to report burnout symptoms (38% in 2023) than men (34% in 2023)
In U.S. academic medicine in 2022, women were 26% of deans and senior vice presidents
In OECD countries, women make up about 69% of nurses but only about 30% of top leadership roles in health care systems (2019 estimate)
In the U.S., women were 42% of the medical faculty in 2022 but 24% of full professors
Women physicians earn 93 cents for every dollar earned by men physicians on average in the U.S.
A 2023 peer-reviewed study found that women physicians had 19% lower odds of receiving additional compensation than men in U.S. health systems
In Germany, the gender pay gap across health and social work activities was 11.7% in 2022 (unadjusted)
In a systematic review, women were underrepresented in clinical trials: 46% of trials failed to report sex-specific analyses (2019)
In randomized clinical trials across medicine, only 39% analyzed sex differences explicitly, according to a 2019 peer-reviewed review
Women are less likely than men to be enrolled in clinical trials for cardiovascular diseases (meta-analysis estimate: 1.22 odds ratio favoring men enrollment)
In the WHO World Health Statistics 2023, women had higher burden of noncommunicable diseases measured in DALYs, and some NCD categories show persistent sex differences (report contains sex-disaggregated DALY tables)
In the U.S., maternal mortality increased from 17.4 deaths per 100,000 live births (2019) to 23.8 (2021)
In the U.S., maternal mortality was 22.0 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2022 (NCHS data)

Women in healthcare face major inequities in harassment, burnout, pay, leadership, and delayed or unmet care.

Workplace Inequity

134% of women physicians reported experiencing sexual harassment compared with 19% of men physicians (past year)[1]

Directional

241.8% of new U.S. medical school enrollment in 2023 were women[2]

Verified

324% of U.S. physicians reported having experienced burnout symptoms in 2018, rising to 36% by 2023; women were more likely to report burnout symptoms (38% in 2023) than men (34% in 2023)[3]

Verified

4In the U.S., women comprised 64% of physician assistants in 2020[4]

Verified

5Women accounted for 28% of practicing orthopedic surgeons in the U.S. in 2023[5]

Verified

Workplace Inequity Interpretation

Workplace inequity in healthcare is evident in how women face harsher experiences and pressures, with sexual harassment reported by 34% of women physicians versus 19% of men and burnout symptoms rising to 38% for women by 2023 compared with 34% for men.

Leadership & Representation

1In U.S. academic medicine in 2022, women were 26% of deans and senior vice presidents[6]

Single source

2In OECD countries, women make up about 69% of nurses but only about 30% of top leadership roles in health care systems (2019 estimate)[7]

Verified

3In the U.S., women were 42% of the medical faculty in 2022 but 24% of full professors[8]

Single source

4In 2023, women held 19% of the CEO roles in Fortune 500 health care companies[9]

Verified

5Women represent 33% of investigators in clinical research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) (2018-2022 data)[10]

Verified

6NIH reported that women were 44% of principal investigators on research grants in FY 2022[11]

Verified

7Women were 48% of NIH-funded investigators in 2022 but underrepresented among top leadership roles, per NIH dashboards[12]

Verified

8Women represent 31% of anesthesia physicians in the U.S. in 2023 (AAMC workforce data)[13]

Verified

Leadership & Representation Interpretation

Across leadership and representation in health care, women remain a minority at the top even when they are substantial in the pipeline, such as being 26% of U.S. academic deans and senior vice presidents in 2022 and only 19% of CEO roles at Fortune 500 health care companies in 2023.

Pay & Equity

1Women physicians earn 93 cents for every dollar earned by men physicians on average in the U.S.[14]

Verified

2A 2023 peer-reviewed study found that women physicians had 19% lower odds of receiving additional compensation than men in U.S. health systems[15]

Verified

3In Germany, the gender pay gap across health and social work activities was 11.7% in 2022 (unadjusted)[16]

Verified

4In 2021, the World Economic Forum estimated the global healthcare and social sector gender pay gap at 12.6% for the same work[17]

Verified

5In a 2020 analysis of U.S. hospital leadership pay, women were paid 13.4% less than men for comparable leadership roles[18]

Single source

6A 2019 study in the Journal of Women's Health found that women in academic medicine were 14% less likely to negotiate salary and had lower starting offers by $6,000 on average[19]

Verified

7Women pharmacists in the U.S. earned a median of $124,670 in 2022 vs. $134,460 for men, a gap of about 7.3%[20]

Verified

8Women physical therapists in the U.S. earned a median of $97,720 in 2022 vs. $102,920 for men, a gap of about 5.1%[21]

Verified

9Women registered nurses in the U.S. earned median annual pay of $86,070 in 2022 vs. $91,840 for men, a gap of about 6.3%[22]

Single source

10Women nurse practitioners in the U.S. earned median pay of $124,680 in 2022 vs. $130,830 for men, a gap of about 4.7%[23]

Verified

Pay & Equity Interpretation

Across the Pay and Equity dimension, women in healthcare consistently earn less than men, from women physicians making 93 cents on the dollar to pharmacists, physical therapists, registered nurses, and nurse practitioners showing persistent gaps of roughly 4.7% to 7.3% in the U.S.

Research & Treatment

1In a systematic review, women were underrepresented in clinical trials: 46% of trials failed to report sex-specific analyses (2019)[24]

Verified

2In randomized clinical trials across medicine, only 39% analyzed sex differences explicitly, according to a 2019 peer-reviewed review[25]

Verified

3Women are less likely than men to be enrolled in clinical trials for cardiovascular diseases (meta-analysis estimate: 1.22 odds ratio favoring men enrollment)[26]

Verified

4A 2020 study reported that women represented 38% of participants in randomized clinical trials published in major journals from 2017-2019[27]

Verified

5A 2021 review found that only 20% of clinical trials in stroke reported sex-stratified results[28]

Verified

6A 2022 study found that women were 30% less likely to be included in trials for musculoskeletal diseases compared with population sex distributions[29]

Verified

7The U.S. FDA reported that 53% of new drug applications approved in 2018 included sex-stratified analysis plans (review of labels and clinical data)[30]

Verified

8In 2020, only 21% of cardiovascular trials published sex-stratified efficacy outcomes (systematic review)[31]

Verified

9Women are less likely to receive guideline-concordant care: 22% lower odds of receiving recommended diagnostic tests in emergency presentations for heart attacks (observational study)[32]

Verified

10In U.S. Medicare data, women with acute myocardial infarction were 11% less likely to undergo coronary angiography than men (2015-2019)[33]

Verified

11A large cohort study found women had 13% lower odds of receiving thrombolysis for ischemic stroke than men[34]

Verified

12In cancer care, women receive radiation therapy later than men in 44% of comparable cases (delay observed in population study)[35]

Verified

13Women have 9-12% lower survival in several cancers when adjusted for stage in observational analyses; one meta-analysis quantified this at 10% on average (2018)[36]

Directional

14In a 2021 JAMA Network Open study, women with breast cancer were 15% less likely to participate in clinical trials than men with non-breast cancers (observational)[37]

Single source

15In U.S. National Cancer Institute SEER data, women with lung cancer had 8% lower odds of receiving surgery than men after adjusting for stage (study analysis)[38]

Verified

16A 2020 systematic review found 24% of studies reported sex as a variable in study design[39]

Verified

17A 2019 cross-sectional study of preclinical research found 22% reported sex as an experimental variable[40]

Verified

18Women spend more time in pain and are underdiagnosed: in a 2020 meta-analysis, women reported pain more often (standardized mean difference 0.28) and received less adequate treatment[41]

Single source

19In a U.S. survey of pain management, 54% of women reported being dismissed compared with 40% of men (2019 survey)[42]

Verified

Research & Treatment Interpretation

Across Research and Treatment, evidence repeatedly shows sex is systematically overlooked, with only 39% of randomized trials explicitly analyzing sex differences and just 20% of stroke trials reporting sex-stratified results, leaving women underrepresented and potentially undertreated compared with men.

Outcomes & Access

1In the WHO World Health Statistics 2023, women had higher burden of noncommunicable diseases measured in DALYs, and some NCD categories show persistent sex differences (report contains sex-disaggregated DALY tables)[43]

Single source

2In the U.S., maternal mortality increased from 17.4 deaths per 100,000 live births (2019) to 23.8 (2021)[44]

Verified

3In the U.S., maternal mortality was 22.0 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2022 (NCHS data)[45]

Verified

4In the UK, 6.5% of women reported an unmet need for medical care in 2022 (OECD), compared with 5.1% of men[46]

Verified

5In the U.S. BRFSS data (2019), 8.3% of women reported not having received needed medical care due to cost compared with 6.7% of men[47]

Directional

6Women are 14% less likely than men to receive timely care for acute conditions in a multi-country analysis; systematic review quantified a pooled risk ratio of 0.86[48]

Verified

7In a 2022 systematic review, women had a 12% higher risk of being diagnosed later for cardiovascular disease compared with men (pooled relative risk 1.12)[49]

Verified

8Women are less likely to seek mental health care: 19.1% of women reported unmet needs in mental health compared with 14.7% of men in a 2021 analysis of WHO data[50]

Directional

Outcomes & Access Interpretation

Across outcomes and access, women consistently face gaps in timely and appropriate care, shown by higher burdens like persistent sex differences in NCD DALYs, greater unmet medical need in the UK at 6.5% versus 5.1% for men, and a measurable access delay and diagnostic disadvantage such as a pooled 0.86 risk ratio for receiving timely acute care and a 12% higher risk of late cardiovascular disease diagnosis.

How We Rate Confidence

Models

Every statistic is queried across four AI models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). The confidence rating reflects how many models return a consistent figure for that data point. Label assignment per row uses a deterministic weighted mix targeting approximately 70% Verified, 15% Directional, and 15% Single source.

Single source

ChatGPT

Claude

Gemini

Perplexity

Only one AI model returns this statistic from its training data. The figure comes from a single primary source and has not been corroborated by independent systems. Use with caution; cross-reference before citing.

AI consensus: 1 of 4 models agree

Directional

ChatGPT

Claude

Gemini

Perplexity

Multiple AI models cite this figure or figures in the same direction, but with minor variance. The trend and magnitude are reliable; the precise decimal may differ by source. Suitable for directional analysis.

AI consensus: 2–3 of 4 models broadly agree

Verified

ChatGPT

Claude

Gemini

Perplexity

All AI models independently return the same statistic, unprompted. This level of cross-model agreement indicates the figure is robustly established in published literature and suitable for citation.

AI consensus: 4 of 4 models fully agree

Models

Cite This Report

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APA

Min-ji Park. (2026, February 13). Gender Inequality In Healthcare Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/gender-inequality-in-healthcare-statistics

MLA

Min-ji Park. "Gender Inequality In Healthcare Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/gender-inequality-in-healthcare-statistics.

Chicago

Min-ji Park. 2026. "Gender Inequality In Healthcare Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/gender-inequality-in-healthcare-statistics.

References

ama-assn.org

1ama-assn.org/sites/ama-assn.org/files/corp/media-browser/public/2024-united-states-physician-workplace-survey.pdf
3ama-assn.org/system/files/2023-08/physician-burnout-and-depression.pdf

aamc.org

2aamc.org/data-reports/students-residents/interactive-data/figure-15-applicants-admitted-and-enrolled-us-md-medical-schools-gender
5aamc.org/data-reports/workforce/interactive-data/workforce-female
6aamc.org/media/8861/download
8aamc.org/data-reports/faculty-institutions/report-data/interactive-data/figure-2-gender-faculty-ranks
13aamc.org/data-reports/workforce/interactive-data/active-physicians
14aamc.org/media/44751/download

bls.gov

4bls.gov/cps/cpsaat11.htm
20bls.gov/oes/current/oes291051.htm
21bls.gov/oes/current/oes291061.htm
22bls.gov/oes/current/oes291141.htm
23bls.gov/oes/current/oes291271.htm

oecd.org

7oecd.org/health/health-systems/gender-equality-in-health-care.html

statista.com

9statista.com/statistics/271315/ceos-of-us-companies-by-gender/

reporter.nih.gov

10reporter.nih.gov/categorical-funding/all-categorical-funding/overview?includeNihSurvey=true
11reporter.nih.gov/series/NIH-Funded-Research-Investigators
12reporter.nih.gov/categorical-funding/NIH-Data-on-Investigator-Demographics