Beth Brown examines the issue of gender bias in medical diagnosis and treatment.
Sadly, it is true that the healthcare a person receives can vary due to that person’s gender. From not understanding how symptoms will present in different bodies, to historical prejudices leading to assumptions, the healthcare system is gender biased and more needs to be done to make the system equal for all genders.
In 2019 a Danish study by Novo Nordisk revealed shocking and worrying statistics when it came to the different health provided to different genders. The study was carried our from 1994 to 2015 and looked at 6.9 million Danish people who were divided into two groups according to their biological sex. The study found that “Women received diagnoses later than men in connection with 770 types of diseases. There was an average difference of about four years.” Ultimately the study found significant delays in the diagnosis of diseases, disorders and conditions of all kinds for females compared to males.
A TEDx talk by Dr Colene Arnold, gynaecologist, brought light to various gender discrepancies in health care, including where her female patient’s husband was diagnosed with a UTI (a condition she comments that many woman have experienced and have been told to treat with antibiotics then can collect from a pharmacy) and was admitted to hospital for antibiotic administration and pain relief through morphine. This also brings into question the many conditions experienced by females where little to no pain relief is offered, while for similar or lesser procedures, males can be offered general anaesthetic. Dr Arnold comments that the historical idea that woman are ‘hysterical’ or ‘overly emotional’ causes them to not be believed when they are in pain and this is offensive and highly dangerous. She states that the most important thing she does with her patients is believe them, after all medical gaslighting is all too common.
When considering Trans and gender diverse people the barriers faced in regard to medical care become even greater. A study completed in 2021 into Trans health care found that “There is an urgent need to address the barriers trans and gender-diverse people face in health care.” Multiple medical professionals, from GPs to consultants to nurses all commented that their training had not included anything about transgender healthcare.
It appears that medicine and healthcare has all too long been practiced as a ‘one size fits all’ approach where this is simply not the case as humans have such varying bodies, and a failure to understand these differences and what these may mean for medical conditions has led to large discrepancies in the care provided.
Sadly, these biases, and insufficient understanding into how different bodies work can lead to insufficient treatment, missed diagnosed or other circumstances which are simply negligent heath care.
If you believe you have suffered from medical negligence, whether due to your gender or any other circumstance, then please contact our expert team of medical negligence solicitors who can provide a free assessment of your case and advise whether you are entitled to compensation.