Médicas

Médicas is the feminine plural form of médico/a in Spanish and Portuguese, used to refer to female physicians or female healthcare professionals. The term denotes women who have completed medical training and practice medicine, and it reflects gendered language common in Romance-language medical vocabularies. In English, the equivalent would be female doctors.

The role of médicas encompasses a broad range of activities, including diagnosing illnesses, prescribing treatments, performing procedures, and providing preventive care. They work in diverse settings such as hospitals, clinics, primary care centers, and academic or research institutions. The path to becoming a médica typically involves earning a medical degree, completing residency or specialty training, and obtaining licensure or board certification, followed by ongoing continuing education.

Around the world, the presence of médicas has grown significantly, contributing to patient care, public health, and biomedical research. However, gender disparities have persisted in some contexts, with underrepresentation of women in certain specialties, leadership positions, and, in some locations, pay gaps. Efforts to address these gaps include policies to improve work–life balance, mentoring programs, and initiatives to promote equal opportunities across specialties and levels of responsibility.

In Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries, the term also reflects linguistic and cultural nuances related to gender in the medical profession. Related terms include médico/médico, médica, and broader discussions of women in medicine and gender in healthcare.