Prefer a woman family doctor? She’s likely paid less — and giving more
- Iris Gorfinkel
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Jan. 22, 2026
By Iris GorfinkelContributor
Iris Gorfinkel is a family physician and clinical researcher in Toronto.
A new Ontario study is a wake-up call for “equal pay for equal work.” It found that female and male family doctors don’t work the same way. On average, patients get more time with women GPs — yet those doctors earn less.
Research supported by the Ontario Medical Association asked roughly 11,000 family doctors to complete surveys. More than 1,000 of them provided details on where they worked (urban or rural), how big their practice was and who they cared for.
They also described how much time they usually spent on the 20 most common visit types, including quick visits for prescription renewals and intermediate visits — the typical mid-length office appointment. The survey also included longer visits, such as following up on patients with multiple problems, addressing chronic diseases and diagnosing new mental health concerns.
For 19 out of 20 visit types, female family doctors spent 15 to 20 per cent longer with patients than male doctors providing the very same service. That’s nearly four extra minutes for the most common type of visit.
In a system that pays mostly per visit, that extra time with patients shows up as lower pay, penalizing GPs who run the extra mile to address patient concerns.
(Pay wall)
