logo
episode-header-image
Apr 2023
27m 41s

Women aren’t being promoted in healthcar...

Bbc World Service
About this episode

Women do 90% of the work in global healthcare but hold only a quarter of leadership roles. We hear from an American doctor who says patients are missing out on the unique perspective of women because they aren’t involved in strategic decision-making. Margaret in Nairobi has set up a WhatsApp group to help to improve the rights of community healthcare workers and Indian doctor Snigdha explains how equality can only happen if childcare and access to education for women are improved.

Pregnancy complications like pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes appear to make newborn babies “biologically younger” than those born to women who have healthy pregnancies. Researchers studied data from 1800 babies from 12 different parts of the United States and found that their so-called epigenetic age was reduced by around a week if their mothers had the conditions.

As students across the world ask the popular artificial intelligence programme Chat GPT to write their essays, Professor Graham Easton assesses how much impact it could have on healthcare, from breast cancer screening to medical record keeping.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Paula McGrath

Image Credit: Getty Images/ SDI Productions

Up next
Yesterday
First malaria treatment approved for newborns
Until now there has been no approved treatment for malaria in newborns and infants weighing less than 4.5kg. We hear from families and clinicians firsthand what this new formulation, due to be approved across eight African countries, means for them.We are joined by Professor Dami ... Show More
26m 31s
Jul 2
Can bacteria-eating viruses be used to fight superbugs?
Phages are viruses that only infect bacteria. How might they help us tackle antimicrobial resistance? Franklin Nobrega and Esme Brinsden from the University of Southampton explain how their citizen science project that collects samples from around the globe is building a library ... Show More
26m 28s
Jun 25
Childhood vaccination coverage stalls worldwide
There has been immense progress on childhood vaccination since 1974, with over four billion children vaccinated worldwide. So why now are we seeing vaccination rates stall, and decline? We look at what is driving this stagnation that is putting millions of children at risk. The p ... Show More
26m 28s
Recommended Episodes
May 2024
The Evidence: Maternal Health in Malawi
The process of childbirth can be painful yet amazing, but at times and in some places, also very dangerous. Recorded in Malawi, East Africa, Claudia Hammond is joined by a panel of maternal health experts to figure out why it is that the equivalent of a large jumbo jet full of wo ... Show More
49m 27s
May 2024
Exploring the Role of Doulas in Maternal Mental Health Support
Dr. Asima Ahmad discusses the significant role doulas can play in pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care, highlighting the importance of clear roles and communication between healthcare professionals, doulas, and birthing individuals for optimal outcomes. Dr. Asima’s personal ... Show More
24m 12s
Jun 2021
Women's Health Special - Nadine Dorries, Unwell Women, Mesh removal centres, Autoimmunity
Women's health has long been the poor relation when it comes to medical understanding, funding and research. The government says it wants that to change - and earlier this year announced the establishment of England's first Women's Health Strategy, which will look at women's heal ... Show More
57m 42s
May 2021
Roopa Dhatt - Getting woman into leadership positions in healthcare
This interview is part of our BMJ interview series, where we talk to the people who are changing medicine. The series thus far has been a bit male dominated - reflecting the leadership in medicine at the moment, if not the actual workforce. One woman who's planning to change that ... Show More
37m 35s
Apr 2022
Weekend Woman's Hour: Ellie Simmonds, No-fault divorce, Educating Afghan girls and SMS education
We explore No Fault Divorce. The biggest reform of divorce law for 50 years comes into force- changing a law that dates back to Henry VIII. We hear from listener, Helen, currently going through a divorce.The Paralympic five time gold medallist Ellie Simmonds was born with achondr ... Show More
43m 49s
Mar 2023
Caroline Rusterholz, "Women's Medicine: Family Planning and British Female Doctors in Transnational Perspective, 1920-70" (Manchester UP, 2021)
Who built the twentieth century birth control movement? In Women's Medicine: Family Planning and British Female Doctors in Transnational Perspective, 1920-70 (Manchester University Press 2020), Dr. Caroline Rusterholz highlights British female doctors' key contribution to the pro ... Show More
32m 42s
Oct 2022
Weekend Woman's Hour: Hilary Mantel’s writings on endometriosis, women in politics, nursing, family whatsapp, the orgasm gap
Record numbers of nurses are quitting the NHS in England, according to new data analysis by the Nuffield Trust for the BBC. More than 40,000 have left the health service in the past year. Another report published this week from NHS Providers said the squeeze on pay amid rising in ... Show More
56m 23s
Aug 2022
Hands-Off Health Tech
We look at two new pieces of health technology which allow medics to treat people without touching them. Breast cancer fatality rates in India are higher than in other countries because women are often reluctant to go for screening. A start up called Niramai wants to change this. ... Show More
24m 21s
May 2021
Women spies; Kelly Gough; Lisa Keogh; Second chances; Home abortion rules
Despite a long and courageous history of female spies, the UK's secret intelligence agencies - MI5, MI6 and GCHQ - are still overwhelmingly dominated by men. The head of GCHQ, Jeremy Fleming, has committed his agency to up its efforts to 'attract talented women' as part of a wide ... Show More
57m 51s
May 2024
Overcoming Gender Bias in Healthcare: How Women Should Talk to Their Doctors
In this episode, Dr. Diane Reidy-Lagunes sits down with Dr. Elizabeth Comen, author of "All in Her Head: The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women's Health and Why It Matters Today." They discuss ways to empower women to advocate for their health when talking to doc ... Show More
18m 58s