5 Key Takeaways

• 1

  Patients seen by female gastroenterologists had lower utilization of emergency, hospital, or primary care services over two years compared to those seen by male gastroenterologists.

• 2

  The study analyzed over 2.7 million gastroenterology consultations from 2002-2020, with female gastroenterologists conducting 15% of consultations.

• 3

  Female patients had higher rates of emergency and primary care visits than male patients, but those seeing female gastroenterologists had reduced service utilization.

• 4

  The reduction in healthcare service utilization was more pronounced among female patients who saw female providers compared to those who saw male providers.

• 5

  Further research is needed to explore factors influencing patient outcomes and healthcare-seeking behavior in gastroenterology.