Gender Parity in Healthcare

By Tammy Seithel, Director of Business Development at Dolbey

EDITOR’S NOTE: Opinions expressed by authors are their own.

A recent survey from a Rock Health report took me by surprise. 55% of women believe that gender parity in the workplace won’t be reached for another 25+ years. Wow. As a woman working in healthcare for 25 years, I am a witness to the recent advancements of female leaders in this field. I’m happy to not be a part of the majority and believe that leadership opportunities for women in healthcare will grow before two decades.

Within recent months I have seen women continue to thrive in healthcare. My team and I just completed a major business contract with an entire team of female leaders. From the legal counsel, to the directors, to the C-suite executives, it was completely run by women. The longtime Vice President of my company even noticed that this was a first for him. I found that hard to wrap my head around and at the same time, I was proud to be part of this moment in my company’s history.

Today in healthcare, an entire team of female leaders is a notable event. However, I am confident that an all-women team will no longer be noteworthy within the next 5 years.

In May of this year, Health Data Management published their list of ‘The most powerful women in Healthcare IT for 2018’ and Becker’s Hospital Review published their list of ‘Female health IT leaders to know’ just last week. I couldn’t believe that I only recognized one name on these lists of powerful women.  As I reflect on my years in the healthcare industry, I began to think about all the incredible professionals I have worked with. Whether I was working on a special project, partnership negotiations or crisis management, female leaders were always the ones who the made the greatest impact. I realized I can make my own list of brilliant women in healthcare and many of my peers in the industry can do the same. As more and more women achieve leadership positions, I know my list will only continue to grow throughout my career.

With a high percentage of women in the healthcare industry, strong female leaders constantly emerging and being recognized for their work, why will gender parity take 25+ years? Really, ladies? Change is happening right before our eyes!

Who’s on your list of “Incredible Women in Healthcare?” Do you see gender parity being reached in the workplace within the next 5 years? Tell us your thoughts!