1) Women are 'taking over the health service'
Since the 1980s, the proportion of male consultants has fallen from 90 per cent to 72 per cent and is on a steep downward trend. Among the youngest consultants aged 30 to 34, just 53 per cent are men.
In medical school, female students already outnumber male students and by 2013 more than half of GPs will be women. By 2017, a majority of all doctors will be women.
The gender balance is changing so fast that the future care of patients is threatened, the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) says.
2) Women doctors will outnumber men within a decade: research
Professor Jane Dacre, chair of the working group which produced the report, said: "This research has shown that women doctors will soon be in the majority and are now reaching consultant status in greater numbers.
"It is likely to lead to an increase in part time working. Also, women on average make different specialty choices from men.
"Understanding now that women doctors tend to favour more flexible working patterns and certain specialties will enable the Government and NHS to secure and maintain the high standard of UK doctors.
"It may be, if current trends continue, that more doctors are needed to provide the same amount of cover.
"More research is essential to find out how reorganising shift patterns and access to childcare facilities will affect the choices doctors make about how they work."
Compare and contrast.
