Yes, women’s healthcare is poor – but gender bias is not to blame for that

‘If there’s a suboptimal interaction between a GP and a patient, is that because the GP is endemically sexist and needs equality training?’ Photograph: Minerva Studio/Getty Images/iStockphoto

The health secretary, Steve Barclay, this morning unveiled his plan to tackle gender health inequality. A “landmark moment”, he called it, “in improving the health and wellbeing of women across the country”.

The proposition was unarguable. That the healthcare system was historically designed for men, by men, is evidenced everywhere, from the comparatively lower life expectancy among women in poor areas to the fact that women, while they live longer, spend a quarter of their lives in poor health, compared with a fifth for men. The report was the result of a 100,000-strong consultation, in which 84% of respondents said they had felt “ignored or not listened to” when seeking help from the NHS.