Patients Use Different Words to Describe Satisfaction with Female versus Male Primary Care Physician Visits

When comparing high-rated PCP visits, patients used different words to describe satisfaction with their female versus male PCP visits, which may suggest that patients hold stereotyped gender expectations for PCPs. We propose that female PCP responses to stereotyped expectations-to achieve "top box" patient satisfaction scores, which affect compensation, reputation, and job satisfaction-may provide a perspective on sex-based differences in physician pay and burnout.