The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in America

Objective: Gender-specific integrated health services have long existed in the arena of women's health care, but men's health centers (MHCs) have only recently emerged as a novel practice model. Here, we seek to evaluate the prevalence and format of MHCs found in the leading academic medic...

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Main Authors: Jeremy Choy, James A. Kashanian, Vidit Sharma, Puneet Masson, James Dupree, Brian Le, Robert E. Brannigan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2015-07-01
Series:Asian Journal of Urology
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214388215000764
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author Jeremy Choy
James A. Kashanian
Vidit Sharma
Puneet Masson
James Dupree
Brian Le
Robert E. Brannigan
author_facet Jeremy Choy
James A. Kashanian
Vidit Sharma
Puneet Masson
James Dupree
Brian Le
Robert E. Brannigan
author_sort Jeremy Choy
collection DOAJ
description Objective: Gender-specific integrated health services have long existed in the arena of women's health care, but men's health centers (MHCs) have only recently emerged as a novel practice model. Here, we seek to evaluate the prevalence and format of MHCs found in the leading academic medical centers in the United States. Methods: The US News & World Report's Top 50 Ranked Hospitals for Urology was used as our cohort. Data were gathered on the presence of MHCs and types of providers and conditions treated. An equivalent search was performed for women's health centers (WHCs). Results: Sixteen of 50 (32%) promoted some type of MHC, compared to 49 of 50 (98%) offering a WHC. Eight of the top 15 ranked institutions (53%) had an MHC compared to eight of 35 (23%) remaining programs. Six of 16 MHCs incorporated providers from a variety of medical disciplines, including urologists, internists, endocrinologists, cardiologists, and psychologists, while another six of 16 MHCs were staffed solely by urologists. Eight of 16 provided services for exclusively urologic issues, four of 16 offered additional services in treatment of other medical conditions, and four of 16 did not specify. Conclusion: A considerable disparity exists between the prevalence of gender-specific health services, with WHCs being much more numerous than MHCs. All but one leading institution had WHCs compared to less than one-third having MHCs. Our findings also highlight the heterogeneous nature of men's health programs, as they exhibit great variability in program type and focus, yet are all being marketed under the “Men's Health” banner.
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spelling doaj-art-eccfdb0e31734fec8965865fe80d9aff2025-08-20T02:28:05ZengElsevierAsian Journal of Urology2214-38822015-07-012317017410.1016/j.ajur.2015.06.005The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in AmericaJeremy Choy0James A. Kashanian1Vidit Sharma2Puneet Masson3James Dupree4Brian Le5Robert E. Brannigan6Department of Medicine, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RL, USADepartment of Urology, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USADepartment of Urology, Mayo Clinic, Mayo Medical School, Rochester, MN, USADepartment of Urology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USADepartment of Urology, The University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, USADepartment of Urology, Meriter Health Services, Madison, WI, USADepartment of Medicine, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RL, USAObjective: Gender-specific integrated health services have long existed in the arena of women's health care, but men's health centers (MHCs) have only recently emerged as a novel practice model. Here, we seek to evaluate the prevalence and format of MHCs found in the leading academic medical centers in the United States. Methods: The US News & World Report's Top 50 Ranked Hospitals for Urology was used as our cohort. Data were gathered on the presence of MHCs and types of providers and conditions treated. An equivalent search was performed for women's health centers (WHCs). Results: Sixteen of 50 (32%) promoted some type of MHC, compared to 49 of 50 (98%) offering a WHC. Eight of the top 15 ranked institutions (53%) had an MHC compared to eight of 35 (23%) remaining programs. Six of 16 MHCs incorporated providers from a variety of medical disciplines, including urologists, internists, endocrinologists, cardiologists, and psychologists, while another six of 16 MHCs were staffed solely by urologists. Eight of 16 provided services for exclusively urologic issues, four of 16 offered additional services in treatment of other medical conditions, and four of 16 did not specify. Conclusion: A considerable disparity exists between the prevalence of gender-specific health services, with WHCs being much more numerous than MHCs. All but one leading institution had WHCs compared to less than one-third having MHCs. Our findings also highlight the heterogeneous nature of men's health programs, as they exhibit great variability in program type and focus, yet are all being marketed under the “Men's Health” banner.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214388215000764DisparityHealth care deliveryMen's healthWomen's healthUrology
spellingShingle Jeremy Choy
James A. Kashanian
Vidit Sharma
Puneet Masson
James Dupree
Brian Le
Robert E. Brannigan
The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in America
Asian Journal of Urology
Disparity
Health care delivery
Men's health
Women's health
Urology
title The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in America
title_full The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in America
title_fullStr The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in America
title_full_unstemmed The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in America
title_short The men's health center: Disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 “best hospitals” in America
title_sort men s health center disparities in gender specific health services among the top 50 best hospitals in america
topic Disparity
Health care delivery
Men's health
Women's health
Urology
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214388215000764
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