The international specialist in public health, global health and health systems at Imperial College London, Helena Legido-Quigley, has warned that gender biases present both in the generation of knowledge and in the organization of health systems have "direct consequences" on women's health, "conditioning diagnosis, treatment and access to care".
"To move toward more equitable health systems we need to incorporate the gender perspective into research, public policies and clinical practice," she emphasized during the opening of the V International Congress on Accessibility to Public Health Systems, where she insisted that these inequalities cut across all phases of care.
In the same vein, the president of Médicos del Mundo, Ruth Díez, stressed that addressing gender inequalities in health is an "essential condition" for building healthier societies and truly inclusive health systems, capable of responding to the needs of the entire population.
"A more equal society is not only a fairer society, it is a healthier one. Healthier for women and for men," Díez emphasized, linking gender equity with better collective health outcomes.
The president of Médicos del Mundo also warned that this congress is taking place in a context of "extraordinary pressure" on many of the gains achieved in equality, and in particular on sexual and reproductive rights. "There are indeed inequalities in health due to gender and recognizing them is the first step to combating them," she stated, calling for these achievements not to be taken for granted.
Sexual rights, mental health and feminisms at the center of the debate
After the opening keynote, the first panel examined the barriers that hinder access to sexual and reproductive health, as well as the role of feminisms in the defense and guarantee of these rights in the face of current setbacks.
The second panel focused on analyzing how gender biases and structural inequalities affect women's mental health and what care models can offer a better response to their specific needs, from a gender and rights perspective.
During Friday’s session, it will be studied how factors such as urban planning, education and working conditions influence women’s health and can reinforce or reduce gender gaps in health.
The congress will close with the lecture by Ana Cristina González Vélez, physician and researcher specialized in sexual and reproductive rights and feminism in Latin America, who will address how women’s leadership and the action of the feminist movement can contribute to profoundly transforming health systems.