Not particularly, I’ve had good and bad in both genders.
My first Obgyn was a dude with gorilla-like hands, with a touch about as delicate as a steamroller and manners to match. My second-before last was a woman with tiny hands, with a touch about as delicate as a chainsaw and manners to match. Specialty picked simply because that and GP are almost the only ones where I’ve had visits with more than one doctor.
Wow, I thought my experience might be unique as far as gyns go. But except that I wasn’t pregnant and the female doctor burned me, this is pretty much my story.
In my experience, male doctors are waaay more considerate and less harsh, at least as gynecologists. Of course, not all male doctors are good, but the few female doctors I’ve had were pretty insensitive.
I do, however, have a female GP because I haven’t been able to find another decent doctor in the area.
My female OB/GYN stripped my membranes without asking me when I was in labor, and generally was way more interventionist than I wanted. The male OB/GYN that I had with my second labor was about a thousand times more gentle and supportive (even if he did stick me in the hospital for ten weeks), and spent a heckuva lot more time listening to me.
On the other hand, the male perinatologist was the worst doctor I have ever seen, and the female perinatologist I replaced him with was great.
My current internist is a man, and I love him. My last one was a man, and I didn’t care for him at all. I think the bottom line is that I don’t really care about gender as much as the fit with me for the person.
I have a slight preference for female doctors. That is, if I have a choice, and the credentials are the same, I’ll try the female first.
My current GP is a man, though, and I like him a lot. He’s very gentle, and he LISTENS when I tell him what’s bothering me. That’s far more important to me than gender.
I don’t care what sex my doctor is unless it’s my dentist. Dentist because I have problems with lockjaw, and with female dentists, who usually have smaller hands, my jaws get less strained. For some reason all my male dentists have had enormous bear paws (ow, ow, crack, argle).
While I’m sure many male gynecologists are gentle, have wonderful bedside manner, etc., I think that I’d be tense with one, and relaxation is helpful during a pelvic.
Otherwise, I don’t care much. I’ve seen more female doctors than males, but that’s been more luck of the draw than anything else.
I have a preference for female doctors, being a male. Prostate exams are just ever so slightly less gay with a woman’s finger up my butt.
My experience with male gynecologists has been poor; I now see a woman who explains things as she does them, doesn’t ever ignore the word “ow” and who has an excellent and non-condescending bedside manner. She also has great nurses. My preference is for a doctor who embodies these traits, regardless of gender. That she can also relate to me as a woman is just a bonus.
When the time came to pick an oncologist for mom, the surgeon asked if we wanted a man or a woman. We said we didn’t care; we just wanted a good doctor.
It doesn’t matter to me about gender so much.
I prefer female doctors for gynecological exams because it’s easier for me to explain/discuss matters with a woman who has the same parts. This is probably irrational, but so what.
As far as GPs go, I don’t care. I’ve had lovely female GPs and right now I have a wonderful male GPs.
And I have never in my life among any of my varied social circle heard of women who prefer having a male gynecologist because they feel strange about women touching them “down there.” Not once.
I don’t care with GPs, I just usually see whoever is available that day and my favorites are based on personality, not sex.
I always had male OB/GYNs and they were fine, but when I went to my first female gynecologist, it was soooo much better. I don’t know if it’s the female thing or not, but the pelvics are so much less painful now. I also feel a lot more comfortable talking to her about my sexual history, etc. I’ve used her for several years now.
I recently had to see a gynecological specialist who was a male and I noticed the difference right away. Supposedly he came very highly recommended, but not only was he rougher, he had a much more authoritarian air about him. With my female gyn, we sit down and converse and I really feel like we are talking at the same level.
I don’t really care whether a doctor is male or female if they’re my GP or neurologist. I currently have a male doctor as my gynecologist/OB and I like him very much and he’ll probably deliver my second child. But I have noticed that the perinatologist I’m seeing for my pregnancy (who is female) is more likely to trust me to know my body than my male OB. For example, before my son was born, I told my OB that I thought I was going to deliver early. It was my first pregnancy, but my son was pressing down with almost every step I took and I could feel changes in my body that I hadn’t felt the entire pregnancy and that were consistent with what I understood to be the onset of labor. But, my OB informed me (kindly, thank goodness) that he thought I was on track to deliver on my due date, which was two weeks from that appointment. I went into labor that night.
On the other hand, I felt like the perinatologist, for whatever reason (perhaps because she was female), listened to me more. Perhaps it would be different for another kind of doctor - I haven’t noticed an appreciable difference between male or female doctors in any other field.
I’ve had female doctors who basically think; it doesn’t hurt them, why should it hurt me? I prefer male doctors, and they are often extra-gentle and careful.
For ob-gyn stuff I prefer a woman. It’s not a modesty issue, it’s just that a man, no matter how skilled, won’t get some of the “issues” involved in feminine health. Like trying to describe color to a person blind from birth. For the same reason a man might prefer a male doctor for prostate or other issues.
When the part I’m having worked on is the same for a man or a woman, I have no preference as to my doctor’s gender.
I have a female GP and a male gynecologist, mostly because those were the ones recommended to me. I might switch the GP, but that has to do with a personality mismatch and I don’t think has anything to do with gender.
I have, however, heard the line of a woman preferring a male gynecologist because she thought any woman who was interested in that line of work must be really weird. The women around her, if I remember correctly, agreed as well. I was pretty young at the time I heard this conversation (a young teenager, too young to be going to a gynecologist) but I remembered it because even at the time I thought it was a strange thing to think.
I’ll buck the trend and say that I do prefer female doctors. I think Mom took me to a male doctor when I was a baby, but most of my childhood I went to a female nurse practitioner, and then from teenage years on, it’s always been female doctors or nurse practitioners.
I can’t really defend my position, but I’m more comfortable talking to another woman on health issues. (Well, this only includes GPs/PCPs, and gyns. I’m fine with male dentists, podiatrists, optometrists, chiropractors, etc.)
When I was a child, almost all my doctors were male. The female pediatrician was the wife of my other pediatrician (married couple, I saw either one depending on the day). I tell you, if that guy had become my OB/GYN, because I have so much trust in him and I do like him, I would’ve have no problems…
That said, I’m not that comfortable in general around strange or near strange men… That alone would not make me relaxed and anxious during a pelvic exam. With the female NP and OB/GYN I go to now, I feel… relief… I feel like I was stupid to not have gone earlier (of course, earlier in life I wouldn’t have been able to see THEM).
The only time I have a preference is for GYN stuff, in which case I absolutely want another woman. It has nothing to do with orientation: I couldn’t care less if my GYN is a lesbian, and I wouldn’t want a gay man. It’s purely about equipment.
I don’t have any preference for GPs, but for gynecological stuff I’ve had better luck with men. I’ve had women really shove around and pinch me with instruments down there, but the men have been more careful.
Edit to add: I have no anxiety about pelvic exams, I had one last week and chatted comfortably with my doctor the whole time about ComiCon.
For anything related to reproductive health I will only be seen by a woman. This isn’t a preference, it’s a requirement. I don’t believe men are less qualified, or poorer doctors, or anything like that, I just have my own issues with people mucking about down there. It’s stressful enough without introducing the male factor.
For any other doctor I don’t care.