Religious Identity Discrimination in the Physician Workforce: Insights from Two National Surveys of Muslim Clinicians in the United States
Aasim Padela, MD, Professor of Emergency Medicine, Bioethics and the Medical Humanities, Medical College of Wisconsin; Benish Baqai, Medical Student, Medical College of Wisconsin
Workplace discrimination is receiving increased attention within healthcare; however, most interventions focus on racial/ethnic and sexual and gender identities. Discrimination based on religious identity remains understudied. While Muslim Americans comprise more than 5% of the physician workforce, the ongoing sociopolitical climate of Islamophobia negatively affects Muslim physician experiences in the workforce.
We sought to quantify perceived religious discrimination among Muslim physicians in the US and compare trends using data from two national surveys conducted in 2013 and 2021. The 2013 survey was mailed to a randomized sample from the Islamic Medical Association of North America (IMANA)1. The 2021survey was administered online to members of American Muslim Health Professionals, IMANA, and US Muslim Physician network. Inclusion criteria for both surveys included being a practicing physician in the US, self-identifying as Muslim, and being English-proficient. In the 2021 survey physicians were also required to work in the US at a university-affiliated hospital, teaching hospital or other academic healthcare setting within the last 20 years. Survey questionnaires contained previously validated instruments probing experiences with discrimination, accommodation, and inclusion.
In 2013, there were 255 physician participants between 24 and 84 years of age. Most were male (70%), Sunni (91%), South Asian (70%), and adult immigrants to the US (65%). Nearly all (89%) considered Islam as the most or a very important part of their life. With respect to discrimination, 24% reported facing religious discrimination frequently in their career, 14% were currently experiencing religious discrimination at work, 7% reported job turnover due to religious discrimination, and 9% had patients refuse their care due to their religious identity. In 2021, there were 264 participants, and similar to the 2013 sample, the majority were male and Sunni. However, some religious and demographic characteristics statistically differed. Specifically, participants were younger, 64% ranged between 24-39 years old (p<0.01), 59% were born in the US (p<0.01), 24% were Shi’ite (p<0.01), and 74% considered Islam as the most or a very important part of their life (p<0.01). With respect to discrimination, 53% experienced religious discrimination frequently over their career (p<0.01) and 36% were currently experiencing religious discrimination at work (p<0.01). Moreover, 32% reported job turnover due to religious discrimination (p<0.01), and 33% had patients refuse their care due to their religious identity (p<0.01).
Although physicians in the 2021 sample are younger in age (p<0.01), less religious (p<0.01), and more ethnically (p<0.01) and religiously diverse (p<0.01), a greater number of participants reported experiencing workplace discrimination due to their religion compared to the 2013 sample (p<0.01). Comparisons of the two samples demonstrate that a greater percentage of Muslim physicians are reporting more experiences of workplace discrimination.
Despite recent advancements in diversity and inclusion efforts at academic medical centers, it appears that some Muslim physicians experience heightened levels of workplace discrimination. Difficulty with religious accommodations results in decreased job satisfaction and increased job turnover, further inhibiting our ability to eliminate healthcare disparities more broadly2,3. Our work highlights that efforts to promote equity in health care must address religious identity discrimination faced by physicians.
We sought to quantify perceived religious discrimination among Muslim physicians in the US and compare trends using data from two national surveys conducted in 2013 and 2021. The 2013 survey was mailed to a randomized sample from the Islamic Medical Association of North America (IMANA)1. The 2021survey was administered online to members of American Muslim Health Professionals, IMANA, and US Muslim Physician network. Inclusion criteria for both surveys included being a practicing physician in the US, self-identifying as Muslim, and being English-proficient. In the 2021 survey physicians were also required to work in the US at a university-affiliated hospital, teaching hospital or other academic healthcare setting within the last 20 years. Survey questionnaires contained previously validated instruments probing experiences with discrimination, accommodation, and inclusion.
In 2013, there were 255 physician participants between 24 and 84 years of age. Most were male (70%), Sunni (91%), South Asian (70%), and adult immigrants to the US (65%). Nearly all (89%) considered Islam as the most or a very important part of their life. With respect to discrimination, 24% reported facing religious discrimination frequently in their career, 14% were currently experiencing religious discrimination at work, 7% reported job turnover due to religious discrimination, and 9% had patients refuse their care due to their religious identity. In 2021, there were 264 participants, and similar to the 2013 sample, the majority were male and Sunni. However, some religious and demographic characteristics statistically differed. Specifically, participants were younger, 64% ranged between 24-39 years old (p<0.01), 59% were born in the US (p<0.01), 24% were Shi’ite (p<0.01), and 74% considered Islam as the most or a very important part of their life (p<0.01). With respect to discrimination, 53% experienced religious discrimination frequently over their career (p<0.01) and 36% were currently experiencing religious discrimination at work (p<0.01). Moreover, 32% reported job turnover due to religious discrimination (p<0.01), and 33% had patients refuse their care due to their religious identity (p<0.01).
Although physicians in the 2021 sample are younger in age (p<0.01), less religious (p<0.01), and more ethnically (p<0.01) and religiously diverse (p<0.01), a greater number of participants reported experiencing workplace discrimination due to their religion compared to the 2013 sample (p<0.01). Comparisons of the two samples demonstrate that a greater percentage of Muslim physicians are reporting more experiences of workplace discrimination.
Despite recent advancements in diversity and inclusion efforts at academic medical centers, it appears that some Muslim physicians experience heightened levels of workplace discrimination. Difficulty with religious accommodations results in decreased job satisfaction and increased job turnover, further inhibiting our ability to eliminate healthcare disparities more broadly2,3. Our work highlights that efforts to promote equity in health care must address religious identity discrimination faced by physicians.