Ontario study: hospital patients treated by female physicians had lower 30-day death rates

Patients hospitalised with common medical conditions in Ontario were somewhat less likely to die or be readmitted when cared for by female physicians, according to a study from the University of Toronto and ICES published in JAMA Network Open and announced on 30 October 2026.

The study

• Population-based data on more than 950,000 adults hospitalised in Ontario between 2008 and 2022 for one of seven common diagnoses, such as heart attack and pneumonia.
• About 259,000 were treated by female physicians and about 698,000 by male physicians (based on the “most responsible physician”); researchers also looked at how much of the stay was covered by female doctors.

Findings

• 30-day mortality: 12.3% with female vs 13.7% with male physicians.
• Readmission: 18.6% vs 18.9% — a slight difference.
• Greater exposure to care from female physicians during the stay was linked to 7% lower odds of dying within 30 days; similar patterns appeared at 90 days and one year.

The university’s announcement suggests possible explanations from earlier research: female physicians may spend more time with patients, communicate in a more patient-centred way and follow guideline-directed treatment more often — but these mechanisms were not tested directly.

Limitations

This is an observational study from one Canadian province: it shows an association, not causation, and unmeasured differences between patients or between physicians (e.g., specialty, workload, experience) could explain part of the gap. The absolute differences, especially for readmission, are small. This article is based on the university’s release; patients should not choose care based on a doctor’s sex alone.