Anesthesiologists who would otherwise have retired 20 years ago are finding that their health as well as their enthusiasm for their specialty allows them to continue to practice. As a society, we are striving for more balance in our personal and professional lives. More anesthesiologists now choose to work less because of family issues or dual careers. When Wall Street assesses the advantages and challenges in managing an integrated work force, time and again the experts demonstrate that the benefits far outweigh the costs. In other words, diversity is important for business success and Wall Street does pay extra for it.
Businesses feel that diversity is a competitive advantage.
In the practice of anesthesiology, we have found that diversity presents similar challenges and advantages. The advantages are greater continuity of the daily work force and larger blocks of post-call time allocated to younger staff with family obligations. Richard M. Flowerdew, M.D., a member of the Committee on Professional Diversity, heads a group at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine. The most important characteristic of a job is a sense of professional development and satisfaction with the work environment. Successful environments value equity and engender employee loyalty, enthusiasm and involvement.