Celebrating National Doctors’ Day: Women in Medicine Transform Health Outcomes

Today, we celebrate National Doctors’ Day—and as an organization focused on women’s rights and especially women’s health, we know this isn’t just about gratitude. It’s about recognizing what decades of research confirm: Women doctors are essential to achieving better health outcomes for women. Over the past 50 years, women have surged from 7% of U.S. physicians in 1960 to over 38% today. Progress? Yes. But equality? Not yet. Women doctors still face pay gaps, leadership disparities, and systemic barriers—particularly women of color. Yet study after study shows that when women lead in medicine, care improves for everyone. Today, we honor their contributions and reaffirm why their voices matter.

A Legacy of Breakthroughs, Not Just Firsts—And Room for Improvement

Women have always been healers, but systemic exclusion defined much of medical history. In 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to earn a U.S. medical degree, despite classmates voting to reject her admission. Twenty years later, Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler became the first Black woman physician, publishing A Book of Medical Discourses in 1883—a groundbreaking guide to caring for women and children post-slavery. These pioneers didn’t just break rules; they rewrote them.

By the 1970s, activism opened doors for women in medical schools. But progress was uneven. Early 20th-century policies that standardized medical education also shuttered institutions serving marginalized communities, sidelining Black doctors for decades. Today, while women dominate medical school classrooms, they remain underrepresented in leadership: only 22% of full professors and 18% of hospital CEOs are women. The path to parity, it turns out, is paved with both milestones and setbacks.

When Women Lead, Health Outcomes Improve

The evidence is undeniable: women doctors save lives. A 2018 JAMA Internal Medicine study found female heart attack patients treated by women physicians were significantly more likely to survive. Researchers attribute this to women doctors’ adherence to clinical guidelines and collaborative communication styles. Another 2020 study revealed women physicians spend 10% more time with patients—critical for conditions like endometriosis or fibroids, which take an average of 7 years to diagnose.

Dr. Ashish Jha, Dean of Brown’s School of Public Health, put it plainly in The Atlantic: “Patients, especially women, are more likely to share sensitive concerns with female doctors. That trust isn’t incidental—it’s transformative.” Studies show women are 24% more likely to receive preventive care and 20% more likely to adhere to treatment plans when their doctor is a woman.

Today’s Innovators: Bridging Gaps, Saving Lives

Modern women doctors aren’t just filling roles—they’re fixing systems. Pediatrician Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha leveraged community trust to expose the Flint water crisis, proving lead contamination’s harm to children after officials dismissed parents’ concerns. Immunologist Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett co-developed the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine while advocating for equitable distribution to underserved communities. And Dr. Susan Moore, a Black physician, used her final days in a COVID-19 ICU to document racist neglect in her own care, sparking a national conversation about bias in medicine.

Their work isn’t just about medicine; it’s about justice.

The Future Depends on Equity

Barriers remain stark. A 2021 study found Black scientists receive 55% fewer NIH grants than white peers, limiting research into conditions disproportionately affecting women of color. As Dr. Uché Blackstock writes in her 2024 book Legacy, “We don’t just need more women in medicine—we need systems that value their insights.” Institutions like Meharry Medical College, a historically Black school, are training doctors to serve marginalized communities, proving representation alone isn’t enough. Equity requires funding mentorship, closing pay gaps, and amplifying voices too often unheard.

Women Doctors Are Healthcare’s Foundation

This National Doctors’ Day, we celebrate women physicians not as exceptions, but as proof of what healthcare could be. From Elizabeth Blackwell’s defiant graduation to Dr. Susan Moore’s courageous advocacy, their stories show that women don’t just belong in medicine—they redefine it. Better outcomes for women start with women’s leadership. And as the data shows, that’s not a hope. It’s a fact.

Sources: Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), JAMA Internal Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, National Institutes of Health (NIH), The Atlantic, Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine by Dr. Uché Blackstock (2024).