An article on NPR from March 24, 2023 entitled Women were already unequal in the world of global health. The pandemic made it worse discusses research by Women In Global Health that illuminates the need for more women in leadership roles in public health worldwide. The report looks at global data and country case studies from India, Nigeria, and Kenya. The article states “While 70% of the health care workforce around the world is made up of women, they hold only 25% of senior leadership roles, the report found – a phenomenon dubbed the “XX Factor.” The article goes on to describe the situation:
“And, the new report found, women already marginalized because of their gender often faced even further discrimination based on age, race, religion, sexual orientation and other factors – being more frequently relegated to the lowest-paying and riskiest jobs. And this, says the report, is a crisis because inequality in health care will only make global health worker shortages worse – especially in less well-off countries.”
The barriers illuminated in this report are deep and complex, but definitely reflect the larger concerns about a shortage of health care providers, in this case women.
HEALTH CONVERSATIONS: When Aware We Care 