header background

Gender

According to the United Nations, gender equality is fundamental to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, affecting access to quality health care, exposure to health risks, and the outcomes of disease and disability—for children and parents alike. Improvements in health, from lower child mortality to greater access to reproductive care, can alter the power to access gender-related rights and freedoms. This section examines the new ways in which health and gender intersect and reinforce each other.

Gender

132 M

Number of girls out of school worldwide in 2016

Number of girls out of school worldwide in 2016 Number of girls out of school worldwide in 2016

303,000

Women die from complications in pregnancy or child

Women die from complications in pregnancy or childbirth Women die from complications in pregnancy or childbirth

21%

Unmet need for contraception in sub-Saharan Africa

Need for contraception in sub-Saharan Africa left unmet Need for contraception in sub-Saharan Africa left unmet

2.7 B

Women legally restricted from same jobs as men

Women legally restricted from same job choices as men Women legally restricted from same job choices as men

Featured

Gender
human rights defenders in ghana

Ghana's Proposed Hate Bill Threatens Safety, Livelihood, and the Health of LGBTQI+ People

by Akua O. Gyamerah, Abena Hutchful  - January 6, 2022

Human rights defenders in Ghana and in the diaspora should work with a broad base of allies to defeat the proposed bill

Gender
women take part in a menstruation ritual

Breaking "Code Red": Why Words Matter When Talking About Menstruation

by Erza Selmani, Becca Reisdorf, Oluwatoyosi Ayodele, Laura Nyiha, Eunice Kilonzo-Muraya

How vernacular perpetuates stigma and shame, portraying menstruation as "unclean"

Gender
https://www.thinkglobalhealth.org/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300_1_1/public/2021-04/Missing%20girls%201x1.jpg?itok=J5YYLpAv

The Missing Girls of India: A National Shame

by Venkatraman Radhakrishnan

A call to reform the institutions and cultural practices that perpetuate gender biases against girls

women dressed in traditional flamenco dresses walk in a city square
Gender

A Look at Women's Protests

by Lillian Posner, Caroline Kantis

A snapshot of women-led protests around the world

REUTERS/Anindito Mukherjee
Gender

Suicide and Indian Housewives

by Siddhesh Zadey

In India, the chances of dying by suicide jump drastically if a woman is a housewife

Girls wave as they take part in celebrations to mark the International Day of the Girl Child at a school in Chandigarh, India, on October 12, 2015.
Gender

How the Pandemic Changed Attitudes About Menstrual Health in India

by Sumegha Asthana, Arundati Muralidharan

Innovation and outreach by individuals, governments, and global organizations have advanced understanding and support

Protesters march during a demonstration to commemorate 40 days since the sit-in massacre in Khartoum, Sudan. Photo taken July 13, 2019.
Gender

The Resilience of Women in Sudan

An interview with Sudanese physician Sarah Khalifa

Doctor Tatjana Peric treats a patient suffering from COVID-19 on International Women's Day at the intensive care unit of the Clinical Center of Vojvodina, in Novi Sad, Serbia, March 8, 2021.
Gender

Women in Health Care: A Call for Pandemic Equity

by Roopa Dhatt, Choolwe Jacobs, Becca Reisdorf

At the G20 in Rome, it's time for a gender-responsive approach to COVID-19

An archival Chinese Cultural Revolution poster reads, "If You Want to Prosper, You Must Control The Population,” promoting China's former one-child plan.
Gender

Abortion in China

Writer Leta Hong Fincher reflects on abortion, women's rights, and the resilient feminist movement in China

A demonstrator holds a placard during a protest against the verdict restricting abortion rights in Warsaw, Poland, January 28, 2021.
Gender

Legal, Safe, and Affordable

by Samantha Kiernan

The state of global abortion access

People write notes at the end point of a silent walk organized by Lebanese non-profit organization Embrace, marking World Suicide Prevention Day
Gender

Unnoticed, Misunderstood, and Unaddressed

by Siddhesh Zadey, Sweta Dubey, Pradeeksha Mukuntharaj, Ashmeet Sachdev, Anushka Jindal

Why gender equity in global mental health matters

A work uniform hangs in the wardrobe of Nitiwadee Sae-Tia, 50, who took her own life after losing her job during the COVID outbreak in Bangkok, Thailand. Photo taken on May 26, 2020.
Gender

Women and Suicide During COVID-19

by Serena Santoni, Alize Ferrari, William James Dangel, Ruri Syailendrawati

In some countries, suicide among females has increased as the pandemic wears on

Cancer patient Deborah Charles is seen through the tube of a magnetic resonance imaging scanner as she prepares to enter the MRI machine for an examination at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington May 23, 2007.
Gender

Cancer Doesn't Stop For You, Millennial

by Ariana Tantillo

So don't skip out on your annual wellness exam, a young cancer survivor warns

A member of a youth pride student group holds a placard before a rally for gender rights in Bangkok, Thailand, on July 29, 2020.
Gender

Answering the Call to End Conversion Therapy

by Dominic Bocci

Why policymakers should keep momentum going to reduce harm to LGBTQ+ people

A woman shows her clean syringes at the Aids Center of Queens County needle exchange outreach center in New York, November 28, 2006. Participants bring used syringes to the program, and trade them for clean ones.
Gender

HIV in the American Midwest

by Magdalene K. Walters, Amanda L. Novotney

The cost of misinformation and controversy