Gender violence in health institutions as a global health issue

The Lancet Commission on Gender and Global Health and UNU Gender & Health Hub present a conversation on Gender Violence in Health Institutions as a Global Health Issue. With guests Ana Flávia Pires Lucas D’Oliveira and Daphne Rattner.

The globalisation of maternal care has led to increased access to essential resources, contributing to the reduction of avoidable deaths and suffering. However, it has also led to an increase in unnecessary, even potentially harmful, interventions and disregarded women’s experiences.

In this seminar, we explore how naming violence against women in health institutions (and many related terms) as a global health issue reignites the debate in the fields of health and gender violence to induce change, in both the global South and North. Through concrete examples of minor and major changes, we highlight the intersectionality of this violence, the role of social movements in creating new demands and health indicators, and the responsibilities of governments and educational institutions.

• Simone Diniz is a Professor in the Department of Health and Life Cycles, Deputy Director of School of Public Health, University of São Paulo
• Ana Flavia d’Oliveira is a Professor of Preventive Medicine, University of São Paulo and Coordinator, Healthcare Responding to Violence and Abuse in Brazil (HERA)
• Daphne Rattner is a Professor of Epidemiology, University of Brasilia and Coordinator, the Brazilian Network for the Humanization of Childbirth