Same white coats, Unequal pay checks.

Healthcare and gender pay is nothing new to the ongoing feminism conversation. And yet, it continues to define the world we live in. The inspiration behind this post is simply the world around me telling me what I cannot do: earn equal pay as my male coworkers in the healthcare field.

As children we get told by family, friends, teachers that we can do anything we want to do in life. But is that just another myth we were told as kids? Santa is real. Easter Bunny is real. Tooth fairy is real. And the world is your oyster!

Want to be a vet? You can do it!

Want to be an astronaut? You can do it!

Scientist, Entrepreneur, Cop, Lawyer, Doctor, anything you want to do in life- you can do!

But when we grow up, the conversation looks a lot different.

I’ve known my whole life that I want to be in the healthcare field. One day, I got sat down by my biggest role model and was told the harsh truth that they don’t tell you as kids. She is a prestigious surgeon who makes significantly less money than her male coworker despite being there 10+ years longer, works more hours and holds a higher rank than him. She warned me that I will have to fight, sweat and demand just to attempt to get paid equally.

This is a conversation that nobody has to have with men. A necessary conversation for young women in the world we live in, but a conversation that should not have to happen.

When kids get told “you can do anything you want in life”, it quietly carries an asterisk. For men, it means just that. For women, it means “you can pursue the job you want but you will have to work much harder, demand more and still be paid less simply because you are a woman.”

It does not matter how qualified you are.

It does not matter how many lives you save.

Too often, what still matters is that you are a woman. That reality will slap you in the face with every paycheck you get.

When my role model sat me down, she wasn’t being cynical. She was being realistic.

“A recent estimate is that female physicians earn approximately 25% less than male physicians (>$2 million over their career), and the gap has persisted over decades.”

Hearing numbers like these just show exactly what needs to be changed. Change doesn’t start with anger alone. What we need is pay transparency, better policies, mentorship for women in leadership, and holding institutions accountable.

As I work toward a career in healthcare, I don’t want to accept inequality as “just the way it is.” The next generation has the chance and the responsibility to speak up and demand fair systems, so young women after us don’t have to.

I don’t ever want to sit down with a young women who looks up to me and tell her she’ll have to work harder just because she’s a woman. I want to tell her that she can work hard, do great things and be valued fairly for them. I want young women to be able to hear, “you can do anything you want in life” without an asterisk.

I will leave you with one question: What would medicine look like if pay was truly based on performance instead of gender?