This volume brings together experts from a variety of disciplines, such as medicine, biology, sociology, epidemiology, anthropology, economics and political science, who focus on three areas: health disparities and inequity due to gender, the specific problems women face in meeting the highest attainable standards of health, and the policies and actions that can address them. Highlighting the importance of intersecting social hierarchies (e.g. gender, class and ethnicity) for understanding health inequities and their implications for health policy, contributors detail and recommend policy approaches and agendas that incorporate, but go beyond commonly acknowledged issues relating to women's health and gender equity in health.

About the Author
Gita Sen is Professor at the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore, India, and Adjunct Professor of Population and International Health at the Faculty of Public Health, Harvard University. Piroska OEstlin is a public health scientist with a Ph.D. in Medical Science from the University of Uppsala in Sweden. She is Associate Professor of public health at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm.

Reviews

"This book puts the weight of analytical frameworks and evidence behind the all too common tragedies of avoidable death, unnecessary illness, and health injustices that beset so many girls and women and also boys and men. It pushes the frontiers of our thinking about the barriers to justice and also provides compelling contemporary material which can - and should - be marshalled to support a right-to-health approach to gender and health."

Paul Hunt

UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health (2002-2008)

"This volume is a unique source of knowledge, inspiration and practical recommendations that go beyond the scope of many previous publications on gender and health. It brings together the evidence base, reflects on and synthesizes key messages, and crosses the needed extra mile to tie research to policy. An extraordinary mix of experiences and backgrounds have shaped it to be truly special. A must read for the many constituencies that are troubled by gender injustices and are seeking to reform the muted and often ill conceived policy actions that attempt to deal with them."

Hoda Rashad

Research Professor and Director, Social Research Center, American University in Cairo

"One cannot act on the social determinants of health globally without considering the position of women. This book lays out most impressively how the structures of society impact on women's health. It brings together an impressive group of authors and presents the definitive view of gender inequity and what to do about it."

Michael Marmot

Chair, WHO Commission on Social Determinants of Health

Book Information
ISBN 9780415654937
Author Gita Sen
Format Paperback
Page Count 318
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 630g