HEIRES questionnaire: ensuring equality in health research

Area of Science:

• Biomedical research
• Health sciences
• Gender studies

Background:

• Inadequate sex and/or gender disaggregated data perpetuates gender bias in biomedical research, clinical trials, and health information systems, negatively impacting medical practice.
• A persistent gender gap exists within scientific institutions and among researchers, despite ongoing initiatives promoting equality.
• Current tools lack a comprehensive approach to assess gender perspective integration across all research stages.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a novel tool for assessing the inclusion of a gender perspective in biomedical research.
• To provide an objective measure for identifying strengths and weaknesses in gender integration within research processes and organizations.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of scientific publications on gender inclusion and biomedical studies indexed in Web of Science.
• Analysis of guidelines and recommendations from leading governmental, funding, and academic organizations.
• Application of the Delphi method by an expert panel to identify key variables for questionnaire development.

Main Results:

• Introduction of the HEIRES questionnaire, the first tool to comprehensively assess gender perspective integration across all phases of biomedical research (team composition, study development, dissemination).
• HEIRES provides an immediate and objective score for evaluating gender inclusion.
• The tool enables professionals, institutions, and policymakers to pinpoint areas for enhancing gender perspective integration.

Conclusions:

• Identifying and addressing gaps in the biomedical research process enhances the quality of research centers, teams, and studies.
• Improved gender perspective integration moves research closer to a fairer, more inclusive, and equitable scenario for personalized health.
• The HEIRES tool facilitates progress towards achieving greater equity and inclusivity in health sciences.