Person-centered Care and Gender Diversity

Abstract

As part of important efforts to provide person-centered care, the particular role of gender as an underlying social determinant in shaping the interaction between clients and providers, while often acknowledged, is still poorly understood. A definitive evidence base has yet to be established and most current data derive from descriptive studies, or evaluations of relatively small-scale interventions.In this review, I address the question as to whether there are differential patterns of care provided by male and female healthcare workers to male and female clients and how gender-based discrimination might impact on provider-patient interactions.Gender-based discrimination refers to any unfair or unequal practices based on gender identity, roles and relations and which prevents women and men of different sociological characteristics and ages from enjoying their human rights, particularly in the context of this article, the right to health.