Health promoting attitudes and behaviors of emergency physicians : Exploring gender differences

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on gender differences in emergency physicians with respect to their attitudes, knowledge, and practices concerning health promotion and disease prevention. Design/methodology/approach – A mail survey of 325 male and 97 female Canadian emergency physicians. Findings – Results suggest female emergency physicians report having greater knowledge of health promotion topics, spend more time with each of their patients in the emergency setting, and engage in more health promotion counseling in the emergency setting than do their male counterparts. Originality/value – The paper argues that in the future, educating and socializing emergency physicians, both male and female, in the practice of health promotion will enhance the potential of the emergency department to be a more effective resource for their community.