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Are Pandemics Gender Neutral? Women's Health and COVID-19
Hannah Simba1, Silindile Ngcobo2
1Department of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.
Insights
The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affects women, worsening existing inequalities in gender roles, economic security, and healthcare access. Public health strategies must address these vulnerabilities to protect women's physical and mental health.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Sociology
- Women's Health
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic, declared in March 2020, has caused a global health crisis.
- Existing gender disparities place women's health at a disadvantage during outbreaks.
- Understanding COVID-19's impact on women is crucial due to pre-existing social inequalities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze how the COVID-19 pandemic creates vulnerabilities for women's health.
- To examine the exacerbation of long-standing inequalities and social disparities affecting women.
- To propose inclusive public health strategies for women during pandemics.
Main Methods:
- Review of COVID-19's impact on women's health.
- Analysis of gender-based roles, economic and food security, violence, work pressure, and healthcare access.
- Drawing lessons from past outbreaks: 1918 Flu, Zika, and Ebola.
Main Results:
- The pandemic intensifies vulnerabilities related to gender roles, economic stability, and safety.
- Women face increased work pressure and barriers to accessing health services.
- These factors significantly impact women's physical and mental well-being.
Conclusions:
- COVID-19 exacerbates gender inequalities, affecting women's health outcomes.
- Past outbreaks offer insights into managing gender-specific health challenges.
- Future public health responses must integrate gender-sensitive approaches for inclusivity.
Abstract:
In December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emerged as a health crisis in Wuhan, China, and was later declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. As it spread and its death toll increased, on the 11th of March 2020 it was declared a pandemic at 4,369 deaths worldwide, and cases and deaths have since surged. With gender disparities already known to leave women and their health at the margins of society during outbreaks, it is important to understand how COVID-19 affects women's health. In this article, we discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic can create vulnerabilities for women and their health and further exacerbate long-existing inequalities and social disparities. These include gender-based roles, economic and food security, violence, work pressure, and access to health and healthcare facilities. These issues have significant repercussions on the physical and mental health of women. To focus our lenses on these issues, we draw lessons from three specific examples of past outbreaks: 1918 Flu pandemic, Zika virus disease, and Ebola virus disease. We conclude by stating how public health responses and strategies for COVID-19 can be inclusive to women's health.
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