Gender Differences in Patient-Physician Communication in Ophthalmic Practice, Pre- and Post-Covid 19.

Abstract

Purpose: Physician communication patterns can increase patient satisfaction and adherence to therapy in the primary care setting. This study investigated gender differences in ophthalmologist communication patterns before and after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Methods: Messages sent by ophthalmic patients at Penn Medicine from 2017-2022 were collected. Differences in the number of physician messages sent for a given patient, median response length and response time to patient inquiries and messages were examined based on year and physician gender.

Results: Female ophthalmologists sent longer response messages to their patients (median [25^th, 75^th percentiles] response length for women vs. men; 672 [492-965] characters vs. 637 [460, 918] characters; P < .0001) and a higher number of response messages per patient compared to their male counterparts (mean [SD] for women vs. men; 5.5 [2.9] vs. 3.0 [1.5]; P = .04). There was an increase in this gender difference in the peri- and post-Covid 19 period (i.e. 2020-2022) (P = .007). Male ophthalmologists sent a higher percentage of same-day responses from 2017-2020 (P < .0001), while female ophthalmologists sent a higher percentage of same-day responses from 2021-2022 (P < .0001). The largest gender difference in same day responses occurred in 2020 (34% for men vs. 30% for women; (P < .0001).

Conclusions: Gender differences exist in ophthalmologist communication patterns and the Covid-19 pandemic impacted these differences. Future studies will be helpful in determining the potential association of these specific communication patterns with patient satisfaction assessments, eye health outcomes and physician burnout.