Medical professionalism and gender in Latin America: a study based on CHAID analysis

Introduction: Medical professionalism is essential in clinical practice, but gender differences in its perception and manifestation have not been widely studied. Objective: To evaluate gender differences in perceptions and behaviors related to medical professionalism in Latin American physicians. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 424 physicians from Paraguay, Peru, and Cuba. A validated questionnaire was used to measure perceptions and behaviors regarding professionalism. Descriptive statistics and analysis using the Chi-square automatic interaction detector were applied. Results: In male physicians, the chi-square automatic interaction detector model identified the main variables as “hiding one’s own medical errors” and “overlooking colleagues' errors.” Of those who admitted to hiding errors, 80% were classified as “unprofessional,” while 93.2% of those who did not ignore others' errors were considered professional. Among female physicians, the most influential variables were “leaking medical information” and “prescribing for compensation from the pharmaceutical industry,” with 92.4% of those who avoided these practices being classified as professionals. It was evident that ethics and transparency impact levels of professionalism. Conclusions: Physicians who admit their mistakes and do not omit those of their colleagues demonstrate greater professionalism. Female physicians who maintain confidentiality and avoid external influences also reflect higher professionalism. These findings underscore the need to integrate a gender perspective into medical education and institutional policies to strengthen professional ethics.