Poverty is a state or a condition, which articulates not only the lack of financial resources but other productive resources such as- food, water, education, health services etc, which manifests in the issues like hunger, malnutrition, illiteracy, marginalisation, social discrimination, and severe health problems among the deprived groups. Poverty impacts women disproportionately. For women, poverty does not only refer to economic disadvantages, but it denies them access to education, food, water, literacy, political status, combined with gender discrimination.
According to data published by the UN and WHO,70% of the total population which comes under poverty is constituted by women and not only that, in developing countries, the rate of poverty for women is higher by 17% than men. Hence, this article will be analysing women's health in the context of poverty.
Impact on Reproductive Health
According to WHO, women of reproductive age may need short-term or acute interventions that could be provided in a primary health care setting, while older women are likely to suffer from multiple chronic conditions that may need more specialized and costly care. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.7 calls for ensuring universal access to sexual and reproductive health care services, including family planning information and education, and the integration of reproductive health care into national strategies and programmes by 2030. Among women who do participate in the labour force, a large proportion of women work in the informal sector, in low paid informal activities or domestic work or in unpaid family work. They are not covered by social health protection schemes and thus risk impoverishment from catastrophic health spending. Lack of social health protection schemes, such as maternity benefits, create additional health risks and financial barriers for women. The loss of income involved in accessing health services is higher in rural areas, where fewer health facilities are available and transport infrastructure is poor. Rural and poorer areas are associated with greater supply-side constraints, such as shortages of health staff and medical supplies.
Impact on Mental Health
Mental health, a topic so much ignored, belittled and seldom talked about, becomes more vulnerable when seen in women's health context and consideration of poverty. Gender affects the epidemiology and risk and protective factors for mental health conditions. Women have a higher lifetime prevalence of mood and anxiety disorders than men. Also, intimate partner violence and violence in general experienced by women, particularly women who are dependent on men economically or the rural daily wage labourer women who face the assault by drunkard partners on daily basis, all these, if persisting for a huge amount of time, make up a fertile ground for mental health issues.
Marginalisation within the Marginalised
Single or widowed women, women with unemployed husbands and women whose husbands’ health insurance does not cover dependants also face greater financial barriers to accessing health services. Moreover, even where women are employed or earn an income, gender norms and power relations in the household can dictate that they have less control over how to spend the household income. This affects not only their own access to health care but often also their children’s. Thus, creating an intergenerational cycle of poverty and health deficiency.
Education, Poverty and Women's Health
It's an acknowledged fact that access to quality education requires access to 'quantity', that is, that amount of wealth that one is committed to provide. Now, this is not only beyond the reach of most people but unfortunately, the gender divide and the rampant discrimination in providing those opportunities to women and young girls are already there and this not only hinder the access to education but this behaviour permanently seals the the fate of women to poverty and the consequent poor access to health and the resulting vulnerability. Hence, the linkages of education, poverty and health crisis cannot be ignored.
Pandemic, Poverty and Women's Health
COVID-19 is another factor
impacting women disproportionately, not
exactly in the health sphere but the related impact of coronavirus pandemic has
created financial crises, and it affected women's health in the sense that because of the financial crises, women,
particularly in rural parts, were denied a nutritious diet and were subjected to
domestic violence. We have witnessed multiple cases concerned with domestic
violence. Another case in point is of the migration crisis that was witnessed
recently, exposing women to sexual abuse and restricting their access to hygiene and sanitary napkins during
menstruation due to mobility and lack of finances.
Conclusion
It has been seen how the socio-economic factors,
combined with the gendered bias and institutionalised oppression of women, take the enhanced repressing role of impacting women's health. The 'feminization of
poverty' does not restrict itself to the 'economy' only, rather it influences
every arena of human interaction. From health, education, employment, nutrition
to childcare. It is always said that poverty is the root of every evil and the
above case can be read as an affirmation of the same.
The first approach to this problem should be to
understand and accept the health challenges and the relationship with poverty and
how it affects women differently. Based on that, the need is to strengthen the
national health policies, programmes with target groups with an understanding
of how the rural-urban divide, economic imbalances and gender discriminatory
practices impact women economically and health-wise. Along with this, emphasis should be given to
provide quality access to education. This is something which is very much
interlinked with the health of women and how they perceive their health
issues. The role of non - governmental
organizations is welcomed and the work of international institutions like World
Health Organisations should be supported by the countries. However, real change
can be realised with the public - centred policies of the state.
REFERENCES:
https://www.who.int/docstore/gender-and-health/pages/WHO%20-%20Gender%20and%20Health%20fact%20sheet. (WHO)
WRITTEN BY
Jahnavi
Chourasia and Kashish Gupta
True
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