Gender Issues

This report, Action against Sexual Harassment at Work in Asia and the Pacific, is intended to serve as a technical report for discussion at the ILO Regional Tripartite Seminar on Action against Sexual Harassment at Work, to be held in Penang, Malaysia from 2 to 4 October, 2001. The aims of the technical report, prepared for the ILO Regional Tripartite Seminar, are to familiarize participants with the phenomenon of sexual harassment at work and to give an overview of initiatives and good practice for its prevention and elimination as taken by governments, employers’, workers’ and women’s organizations.

Gender issues are important to address during medical education, however research about the implementation of gender in medical curricula reports that there are obstacles. The aim of this study was to explore physician teachers' attitudes to gender issues. [from abstract]

The Women’s Health and Gender Directorate and the Gender Focal Point of the National Department of Health and the South African Gender-Based Violence & Health Initiative co-hosted a two-day workshop to initiate a process of developing an appropriate health sector response to gender-based violence. It was held from the 26-27th March 2001 with 43 participants from all provinces, national government as well as NGO stakeholders. This document is a report of the conference and the issues discussed. [from executive summary]

Se presentan una serie de recomendaciones de políticas y líneas de investigación que buscan instalar como "campo" de acción y de investigación la producción sistemática de información sobre recursos humanos en salud desde una perspectiva de género. [rusumen]

This review highlighted the fact that employment equity debates and policies largely refer to high-income countries. Even in these countries, there is more rhetorical commitment than hard evidence of successful outcomes. Evaluations have been mainly post hoc and many initiatives have not been evaluated at all. There is a continuing debate about what is the appropriate kind of intervention, a number of competing models being advocated. The most noticeable trend seems to be away from reliance on targeting by numbers (particularly for recruitment) and towards more comprehensive approaches across a range of inter- and intra-organizational interventions and over the whole career of the employee.

Academic medicine has the opportunity to improve the quantity and quality of the health workforce as a means of strengthening the broader health system. However, it must address the gender dimensions of enrollment, curriculum, and promotion to have a positive impact on human resources for health around the world. [author's description]

This paper reviews current literature and debates about health sector reform in developing countries in the context of its possible implications for women's health and for gender equity. It points out that gender is a significant marker of social and economic vulnerability which is manifest in inequalities of access to health care and in women's and men's different positioning as users and producers of health care. [from abstract]

Gender analysis of the health workforce may reveal that health systems themselves can reflect or even exacerbate many of the social inequalities they are meant to address and be immune from.

This paper maps the context of how gender shapes provider-client interaction and the impact of these interactions; provides a detailed breakdown of the nature of provider-patient interactions and how gender impacts on these interactions from the perspective of patients and providers; and reviews gender-specific policies and program interventions within the health system for improving the interpersonal dimension of health care and hence quality of care. [adapted from executive summary]

The study investigated the relationship between gender and knowledge, attitude and practice of infection control among oral health care workers in the management of patients with HIV/AIDS in Osun State of Nigeria. It was a cross-sectional survey using 85 oral Health care workers enlisted in the public dental health clinics. [from abstract]

Mainstreaming the gender dimension into occupational safety and health was included as one of the key objectives in the European Community strategy on safety and health at work 2002–06.To contribute to this European objective, the Administrative Board of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work decided to include a report to review gender issues in occupational safety and health in the Agency’s 2002 work programme.

There are substantial differences in the working lives of women and men and this affects their occupational safety and health (OSH). The Community strategy on health and safety at work has mainstreaming, or integrating, gender into occupational safety and health activities as an objective. To support this, the Agency has produced a report examining gender differences in workplace injury and illness, gaps in knowledge and the implications for improving risk prevention. This factsheet summarizes the main findings. [adapted from publisher's description]

The involvement of district-level workers in local-level practical approaches to mainstreaming gender is central to facilitating change and informing health strategies. There are very few practical examples of mainstreaming gender in health, especially at the lower levels of the health sector. One approach is to build the capacity of staff to conduct and respond to gender analysis. [author's description]

The Gender Policy Guidelines have been established in order to support the Department of Health in meeting not only its constitutional commitment to promoting gender equity and equality, but also its own commitments to equity, meeting the needs of those who have been previously marginalized and improving its productivity and quality of care within the health services.

Gender differences contribute to patients' health and illness. However in current healthcare practices attention to gender differences is still underdeveloped. Recognizing these differences and taking them into account can improve the quality of care. In this study we aimed to investigate whether GPs' gender sensitivity can be stimulated by a training program. [from abstract]

A tool designed to help program and training managers, curriculum designers and trainers facilitate the operationalization and assessment of gender sensitivity during pre- and in-service training of service providers.

Tools to assist primary providers and their managers in assessing, monitoring and improving the gender sensitivity of family planning and reproductive health services on an ongoing basis. [publisher's description]

Programs and services need to be sensitively designed to facilitate women’s access to physical and social needs. This paper narrates the experience of working with health providers from public and private sectors, community, local government representatives and community-based organizations. Through transformative learning, this endeavour focused on initiating a process of sensitization on gender related health issues for women. [from abstract]

Health workers play a key role in screening for and treating the consequences of gender-based violence, and female health workers may themselves experience GBV, compromising their ability to work. Training health workers to identify, treat and respond effectively to GBV is essential for the health sector and the communities that health workers serve. The Capacity Project conducted a search of existing training modules and training support materials on GBV, particularly those intended for health care personnel. The purpose of this activity was to identify and review existing GBV training modules that could be adapted and/or integrated into pre-service education or in-service training curricula in developing countries. [adapted from author]

This article takes up the relatively neglected issue of gender in human resources policy and planning (HRPP), with particular reference to the health sector in developing countries.

This study investigates the experiences of informal caregivers of people living with HIV in two semi-rural communities in South Africa. It is argued that a thorough understanding of how home-based care undermines the physical health and psychological wellbeing of already vulnerable women is crucial for informing policies on home-based care. Thus, there is a need to incorporate gender perspectives when planning and implementing home-based care programs. [from abstract]

Stronger pre-service education and in-service training systems for health workers are essential to meet the increasing need for quality services. To support efforts to improve health worker education and training systems, the Capacity Project has assembled a collection of resources that can be used for reference and adaptation. While the Capacity Project does not endorse any particular document or approach represented in these resources, they were selected by Project staff with expertise in the content areas. [author's description]

This action guide offers practical guidance on creating or expanding HIV/AIDS workplace programs for civil services. Human resource managers, employee welfare managers, medical officers and labor representatives in government ministries and agencies can use the guide to design and develop effective and appropriate HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support programs. Public Sector Workforce is intended to be a basic reference tool. Users can select chapters to assist with specific aspects of an HIV/AIDS program. Checklists are included for assessing the effects of HIV/AIDS on a particular workplace and for developing HIV/AIDS workplace policies or programs. There are also suggested resources for more assistance. [publisher's description]

In this paper I discuss gender issues manifested within health occupations and across them. In particular, I examine gender dynamics in medicine, nursing, community health workers and home carers. I also explore from a gender perspective issues concerning delegation, migration and violence, which cut across these categories of health workers. These occupational categories and themes reflect priorities identified by the terms of reference for this review paper and also the themes that emerged from the accessed literature. [from summary]

The manual is designed to help the ILO’s partners understand the issues and apply the ILO Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work. The Code is at the core of the ILO’s Programme on HIV/AIDS, providing guidance to governments, employers and workers, as well as other stakeholders, on national action plans and workplace policies and programmes to combat HIV/AIDS.

In response to the under-representation of female peer educators in the Geração BIZ Program (GBP), an adolescent sexual and reproductive health program in Mozambique, an operational research study was used to test new strategies for improving recruitment, participation, and retention of female peer educators. The study tested an intervention model to increase the involvement and performance of girls in the GBP. The study started with the hypothesis that a protocol addressing young women’s needs for comfort and security, skills acquisition, support, and mentoring would improve their recruitment, retention, and effective performance in the program.

Based on the experiences of an IPPF/WHR regional initiative to integrate services for victims of gender-based violence into reproductive health programs, this manual provides tools and guidelines for program managers working in developing countries. Topics include: planning a program, implementing routine screenings, providing specialized and emergency services, building reference networks, and legal advocacy. Also includes practical tools to determine provider attitudes to gender-based violence, establish support groups, establish legal definitions and responsibilities, and monitor the quality of care.

As the global community mobilizes around the need to be innovative and think beyond training people in a vacuum it is essential that gender is considered. Such an approach uses knowledge about the gender as a means to increasing understandings of the complex set of issues around the supply, demand and migration of HRH. Examining HRH issues from a gender perspective will illuminate innovative strategies to improve the effectiveness of people providing health services. [from introduction]

As the global community mobilizes around the need to be innovative and think beyond training people in a vacuum it is essential that gender is considered. Such an approach uses knowledge about the gender as a means to increasing understandings of the complex set of issues around the supply, demand and migration of HRH. Examining HRH issues from a gender perspective will illuminate innovative strategies to improve the effectiveness of people providing health services. [from introduction]

These training modules and handouts provide the materials to conduct a two day workshop designed to help participants define gender and related concepts; understand the continuum of gender as it relates to integration in projects; understand the six domains of gender and related questions; apply a process for gender analysis to HRH contexts; understand where and how gender can be integrated in HRH country strategies. [adapted from author]