What is...
The Pain Gap
The "gender pain gap" isn't just a phrase — it's a documented pattern in how women's pain is researched, diagnosed, and treated differently.
This page exists because we believe knowing the scale of the problem is the first step to demanding better.
The proof
Disparities in pain and Treatment | Harvard Medicine
Disparities in pain and Treatment | Harvard Medicine
Disparities in pain and Treatment | Harvard Medicine
Consider this: women in pain are much more likely than men to receive prescriptions for sedatives, rather than pain medication, for their ailments. One study even showed women who received coronary bypass surgery were only half as likely to be prescribed painkillers, as compared to men who had undergone the same procedure. We wait an aver
Consider this: women in pain are much more likely than men to receive prescriptions for sedatives, rather than pain medication, for their ailments. One study even showed women who received coronary bypass surgery were only half as likely to be prescribed painkillers, as compared to men who had undergone the same procedure. We wait an average of 65 minutes before receiving an analgesic for acute abdominal pain in the ER in the United States, while men wait only 49 minutes.
Time to take women's health seriously | BBC Science
Disparities in pain and Treatment | Harvard Medicine
Disparities in pain and Treatment | Harvard Medicine
A fundamental flaw exists in the healthcare system, and it’s having dire consequences for women.
This is the fact that pain in women is more poorly understood, and thus mistreated, compared to pain in men – due to systemic gaps and biases.
It’s known as the gender pain gap. And it is widening.
A recent report, commissioned by Nurofen, shows
A fundamental flaw exists in the healthcare system, and it’s having dire consequences for women.
This is the fact that pain in women is more poorly understood, and thus mistreated, compared to pain in men – due to systemic gaps and biases.
It’s known as the gender pain gap. And it is widening.
A recent report, commissioned by Nurofen, shows that in 2023 11 per cent more women than men feel their pain has been ignored or dismissed, compared to 7 per cent in 2022.
Gender Equity in Pain | European Pan Foundation
Disparities in pain and Treatment | Harvard Medicine
Gender Equity in Pain | European Pan Foundation
The gender pain gap refers not only to differences in pain prevalence, but also to how inequalities in research, healthcare, social roles, and working conditions influence who is believed, who receives a diagnosis, who accesses effective treatment, and who bears the wider social and economic consequences of pain.
Women and girls are more l
The gender pain gap refers not only to differences in pain prevalence, but also to how inequalities in research, healthcare, social roles, and working conditions influence who is believed, who receives a diagnosis, who accesses effective treatment, and who bears the wider social and economic consequences of pain.
Women and girls are more likely to experience many chronic pain conditions and often report greater pain severity and functional impairment.