Women in focus: health care must be gender-equitable!

Women in focus: health care must be gender-equitable!

In the current discussion about health care, it is clear that it is time to focus more on women's fates. The reasons are not only a different anatomy or the different course of the disease, but also a completely different awareness of the problem. The Rhine Palatinate reports that Federal Health Minister Nina Warken points out: “Women are not little men”. This statement could not make it clearer that gender differences in medical care need to receive more attention.

A hot topic in this context is heart disease. Worldwide, these diseases play a central role as a cause of death for both sexes. However, studies show that women often experience atypical heart attack symptoms, leading to confusion and hesitation. The Heart Foundation explains that many women, especially younger ones, do not take their own health warning signs seriously due to work commitments or family reasons. Accordingly, they often hesitate to call 112 if they have symptoms.

The hesitation about symptoms

What is frightening is that women over 65 often wait too long to alert the emergency services, even though the risk of heart attack increases in this age group. The so-called “MEDEA” study has shown this and is alarmed by the gap between risk and action. This reserved reaction means that many women do not receive the medical help they need in a timely manner, which can have fatal consequences.

Another interesting aspect is broken heart syndrome, which occurs more frequently in women and is caused by emotional stress. This is a form of stress cardiomyopathy and not a blocked coronary artery, as is often the case in men. Current guidelines show weaknesses because women are often underrepresented in clinical studies. This means that the specific differences between the sexes in terms of prevalence, course and treatment response are not sufficiently taken into account.

A call for change

It is time for medicine to rethink this. Warken calls on services and providers to quickly rethink health care and to firmly anchor gender-specific aspects in health guidelines. This is the only way to ensure justice for all affected women. Scientists and specialists are called upon to improve their education and training in order to increase the quality of care and better protect women in the future. After all, according to many studies, women have a strong perception of risk, but often do not act accordingly.

Ultimately, the conclusion remains: Gender-specific differences are not a nice-to-have, but a must in medical research and care planning. Society and health systems are called upon to finally take women seriously, not only in theory, but above all in the practical implementation of health care.