Open AccessWomen’s health in times of COVID-19 pandemic. Do sex and gender matter?
Author(s) -
Joanna Zembala-John
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
zdrowie publiczne
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2083-4829
pISSN - 0044-2011
DOI - 10.2478/pjph-2021-0014
Subject(s) - pandemic , public health , covid-19 , coronavirus , environmental health , population , inequality , demography , psychology , medicine , gerontology , demographic economics , sociology , economics , disease , nursing , mathematical analysis , mathematics , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty)
The COVID-19 epidemic has negatively affected all spheres of life, leading to the deterioration of health and quality of life. Although it has affected both men and women, it has had an extraordinary impact on the latter, exposing and exacerbating the existing health inequalities among those groups. There is increasing evidence that both sex and gender-related factors make women more prone to the harmful effects of SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, it is expected that the crisis caused by coronavirus will have long-term severe medical, social, and economic consequences in this population. This paper aimed to investigate the key factors contributing to the different outcomes of COVID-19 in men and women and present multi-dimensional effects of coronavirus pandemic from the perspective of women. Sex and gender differences must not be ignored in analyzing the impact of COVID-19. Sex/gender-oriented approach should be implemented in all public health actions: from collecting sex-disaggregated data to designing tailored repair post-COVID policies.