Women may be hopeless at saving lives as they take longer to react in emergency situations, a controversial study has claimed.

In a test, female medical students took longer to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and spent less time with their hands on a patient.

The Swiss research team claims the study proves female trainee doctors are 'inferior' to their male colleagues.

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Women may be worse at saving lives as they take longer to react in emergency situations, a controversial study has claimed (stock image)

FEMALE DOCTORS PROVIDE BETTER CARE Female doctors provide a better quality of care than their male counterparts, according to a new study, according to previous research. Canadian research found that female GPs tended to spend longer with patients, were more likely to prescribe recommended medication and referred more patients for further examinations. The research, which was carried out in Canada and compared 870 general practitioners, found the differences between men and women medics were greater among older doctors. Lead researcher Valerie Martel, from the University of Montreal, said: 'Women had significantly higher scores in terms of compliance with practice guidelines. 'They were more likely than men to prescribe recommended medications and to plan required examinations.' Advertisement

Knowledge, ability and the interaction between members of the resuscitation team are vital for swift action and a successful outcome.

Earlier studies have shown that efficient and strong leadership communication improves the patient's chances of survival.

Because of this, students are taught these communication skills during their medical training.

But to date there has been little research into how gender affects performance in resuscitation situations.

A study by the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel has now examined the differences between male and female medical students' performance and leadership behaviour during CPR.

Study leader Professor Sabina Hunziker, from the University of Basel, Switzerland, said: 'We found important gender differences, with female rescuers showing inferior CPR performance.

'Compared with male-only teams, female-only teams showed significantly less hands-on time and significantly more delays in starting chest compressions.

As part of the study, 216 medical students (108 women and 108 men) were divided into groups of three.

Researchers analysed the performance of the individual groups during a simulated cardiac arrest scenario on a dummy patient.

They focused on hands-on time, defined as the uninterrupted CPR time within the first three minutes after the onset of the cardiac arrest, and also noted how often the participants made clear leadership statements.

The Swiss research team claims the study proves female trainee doctors are 'inferior' to their male colleagues (stock image)

She added: 'We found important shortcomings in leadership behaviour of female rescuers, such as fewer secure leadership statements and less planning of pending tasks.

'A cardiac arrest situation should therefore favour males as primary leaders.'

However previous research has shown that female doctors provide better care than men.

Canadian research found that female GPs tended to spend longer with patients, were more likely to prescribe recommended medication and referred more patients for further examinations.

The research was published in the journal Critical Care Medicine.