(Press-News.org) Women health sector leaders are good for a nation’s wealth, health, innovation, and ethics, among other things, finds a review of the available evidence, published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health.
Yet despite their unique and positive impact, they are a major underused resource, particularly in low and middle income countries, say the researchers, who call for more and sustained investment to maximise women’s potential and reap the benefits of their contribution.
Despite making up 70% of the healthcare workforce, as a whole, and 90% of the nursing and midwifery workforce, they hold just 25% of leadership roles, point out the researchers.
While good evidence is beginning to emerge that women leaders make a positive difference to maternal and healthcare policies, and to the reduction of health inequalities, it’s not yet clear what their impact might be on global health, they add.
To find out, the researchers carried out a scoping review of peer reviewed research to map evidence on the impact of women’s leadership in organisations in low and middle income countries, focusing in particular on global health.
In all,137 relevant articles met the eligibility criteria and were included in the review. A study was tagged positive if it reported an improvement, increase, or benefit of the assessed outcome as a result of women’s leadership. It was tagged negative if it reported a decrease, weakening, or worsening of the assessed outcome. Null results didn’t report any change.
Most of the included studies reported a positive impact of women’s leadership: 119 (97%) were positive and statistically significant; 12 (9%) were positive and statistically insignificant.
Some 35 (26%) studies reported negative and statistically significant results for particular outcomes while 13 (9%) reported negative and statistically insignificant results. And 33 (24%) reported null results. Around reported some combination of positive, negative, or null results.
The review identified women leaders’ positive influence on six areas of impact. These were: financial performance, risk, and stability; innovation; engagement with ethical and sustainability initiatives; health outcomes; organisational culture and climate, including reputation, employee retention, and team cohesion and communication; and influence on other women’s careers and aspirations.
Even those studies reporting mixed findings still largely pointed to positive results, particularly when modified by other factors, such as better education, greater levels of experience, and opportunities to work with other women across an organisation.
“What is less clear is why women leaders have this impact, particularly in the face of overt and covert biases, discrimination, harassment, patriarchal norms, etc,” note the researchers.
The answer, they suggest, may lie in women’s more effective transformational leadership behaviours and their tendency to use more democratic and participative styles.
“In all sectors, across leadership roles, and across geographies, women’s leadership can produce positive results. Women leaders’ success, however, cannot be separated from the contexts in which they work, and unsupportive environments can affect the extent to which women leaders can have an impact,” write the researchers.
And they conclude: “Increased and sustained investment in women’s leadership within the health sector can lead to improved outcomes for organisations and their clients.
“Such investments must not only target individual women, but also seek to foster organisational cultures that promote and retain women leaders and support their independent decision making.”
A linked editorial by Dr Jocalyn Clark, The BMJ’s international editor, argues that men’s monopoly on global health leadership is at odds with the scientific evidence. And in the current context of the backlash against rights and equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts, it’s even more important to advocate for gender equality, she says.
“Change is the responsibility of everyone—not just women. But clearly more women appointed to leadership positions could drive transformative change in these biased systems,” she argues.
END
Women health sector leaders good for a nation’s wealth, health, innovation, ethics
But major underused resource despite their unique and positive impact, say researchers More and sustained investment needed to maximize their potential and reap benefits
2025-02-05
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
‘Good’ cholesterol may be linked to heightened glaucoma risk among over 55s
2025-02-05
‘Good’ (HDL) cholesterol, usually considered to be beneficial for health, may be linked to a heightened risk of the serious eye condition, glaucoma—at least among the over 55s— suggest the results of a large observational study, published online in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.
Paradoxically, ‘bad’ (LDL) cholesterol, usually regarded as harmful to health, may be associated with a lower risk of glaucoma, a condition that damages the optic nerve, potentially leading to irreversible sight ...
GLP-1 drug shows little benefit for people with Parkinson’s disease
2025-02-05
The GLP-1 drug, exenatide, has no positive impact on the movement, symptoms or brain imaging of people with Parkinson’s, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.
The world’s largest and longest trial of exenatide in people with Parkinson’s disease was funded by the National Institute for Health & Care Research (NIHR) with support for sub-studies from Cure Parkinson’s and Van Andel Institute.
For their research, published in The Lancet, the team designed a randomised controlled phase 3 trial to definitively determine whether exenatide use was associated with any benefit in people with Parkinson’s and ...
Generally, things really do seem better in morning, large study suggests
2025-02-05
Generally, things really do seem better in the morning, with clear differences in self-reported mental health and wellbeing across the day, suggest the findings of a large study published in the open access journal BMJ Mental Health.
People generally wake up feeling in the best frame of mind in the morning but in the worst around midnight, the findings indicate, with day of the week and season of the year also playing their part.
Mental health and wellbeing are dynamic in nature, and subject to change over both short and extended periods, note the researchers. But relatively few studies have looked at how these might change over the course of the day, and those studies that ...
Juicing may harm your health in just three days, new study finds
2025-02-04
“Most people think of juicing as a healthy cleanse, but this study offers a reality check”
CHICAGO --- Think your juice cleanse is making you healthier? A new Northwestern University study suggests it might be doing the opposite. The study, recently published in Nutrients, found that a vegetable and fruit juice-only diet — even for just three days — can trigger shifts in gut and oral bacteria linked to inflammation and cognitive decline.
How was the study conducted?
Northwestern scientists studied three groups of healthy adults. One group consumed only juice, another had juice with whole ...
Forest landowner motivation to control invasive species depends on land use, study shows
2025-02-04
URBANA, Ill. – Many U.S. forests are privately owned, particularly in the Eastern and North Central part of the country. This makes control of invasive plants and pests challenging because efforts must be coordinated across landowners. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign explores how differences in ownership motivation affects willingness to control, and how economic incentives can be implemented most efficiently.
“Some own the land for recreational purposes, some own it because they want to produce timber, and some are a combination of both. If one landowner controls invasive species ...
Coal emissions cost India millions in crop damages
2025-02-04
In many parts of India, a single noxious pollutant from coal-fired power stations drags down annual wheat and rice yields by 10% or more, according to a new study by Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability researchers.
The two grains are critical for food security in India, the second most populous country in the world and home to a quarter of all undernourished people globally.
“We wanted to understand the impact of India’s coal electricity emissions on its agriculture because there might be ...
$10.8 million award funds USC-led clinical trial to improve hip fracture outcomes
2025-02-04
The University of Southern California has been approved for $10.8 million in research funding by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) to compare approaches to treating older adults with a fracture of the hip. Led by principal investigator Joseph Patterson, MD, an orthopaedic surgeon specializing in fracture care at Keck Medicine of USC, the “FASTER-Hip” trial aims to determine whether patients with a certain type of hip fracture fare better with a hip replacement or a simpler surgery known as internal fixation.
The trial leadership team includes ...
University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center among most reputable academic medical centers
2025-02-04
CLEVELAND -- University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center is one of the most recognizable hospitals among doctors in the U.S. and around the world, according to an annual survey.
UH Cleveland Medical Center was ranked eighth in the U.S. and 16th globally in a survey of the strongest Academic Medical Center brands, according to Brand Finance, a London-based brand valuation consultancy.
“This ranking is a reflection of all we do at University Hospitals to provide compassionate care for patients, work to find the next generation of therapies and treatments, invest ...
Emilia Morosan on team awarded Kavli Foundation grant for quantum geometry-enabled superconductivity
2025-02-04
Rice University physicist Emilia Morosan is part of an international research collaboration that has been awarded multimillion-dollar funding from The Kavli Foundation to develop and test next-generation superconductors through artificial intelligence and quantum geometry. This global initiative, spearheaded by Päivi Törmä of Aalto University in Finland, seeks to push the boundaries of quantum materials science and superconductivity.
The project includes funding from the Klaus ...
Unlock sales growth: Implement “buy now, pay later” to increase customer spending
2025-02-04
Researchers from Imperial College Business School and University of Leeds published a Journal of Marketing study that examines the impact of BNPL installment payments on retail sales. The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing, is titled “Buy Now Pay Later: Impact of Installment Payments on Customer Purchases” and is authored by Stijn Maesen and Dionysius Ang.
Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) is an increasingly popular payment method, allowing customers to spread payment into interest-free installments over a few weeks or months. Worldwide ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
CMD-OPT model enables the discovery of a potent and selective RIPK2 inhibitor as preclinical candidate for the treatment of acute liver injury
Melatonin receptor 1a alleviates sleep fragmentation-aggravated testicular injury in T2DM by suppression of TAB1/TAK1 complex through FGFR1
Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals Shen-Bai-Jie-Du decoction retards colorectal tumorigenesis by regulating the TMEM131–TNF signaling pathway-mediated differentiation of immunosuppressive dendritic ce
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B Volume 15, Issue 7 Publishes
New research expands laser technology
Targeted radiation offers promise in patients with metastasized small cell lung cancer to the brain
A high clinically translatable strategy to anti-aging using hyaluronic acid and silk fibroin co-crosslinked hydrogels as dermal regenerative fillers
Mount Sinai researchers uncover differences in how males and females change their mind when reflecting on past mistakes
CTE and normal aging are difficult to distinguish, new study finds
Molecular arms race: How the genome defends itself against internal enemies
Tiny chip speeds up antibody mapping for faster vaccine design
KTU experts reveal why cultural heritage is important for community unity
More misfolded proteins than previously known may contribute to Alzheimer’s and dementia
“Too much going on”: Autistic adults overwhelmed by non-verbal social cues
What’s driving America’s deep freezes in a warming world?
A key role of brain protein in learning and memory is deciphered by scientists
Heart attacks don’t follow a Hollywood script
Erin M. Schuman wins 2026 Nakasone Award for discovery on neural synapse function and change during formation of memories
Global ocean analysis could replace costly in-situ sound speed profiles in seafloor positioning, study finds
Power in numbers: Small group professional coaching reduces rates of physician burnout by nearly 30%
Carbon capture, utilization, and storage: A comprehensive review of CCUS-EOR
New high-temperature stable dispersed particle gel for enhanced profile control in CCUS applications
State gun laws and firearm-related homicides and suicides
Use of tobacco and cannabis following state-level cannabis legalization
Long-term obesity and biological aging in young adults
Eindhoven University of Technology and JMIR Publications announce unlimited open access publishing agreement
Orphan nuclear receptors in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease development
A technological breakthrough for ultra-fast and greener AI
Pusan National University researchers identify key barriers hindering data-driven smart manufacturing adoption
Inking heterometallic nanosheets: A scalable breakthrough for coating, electronics, and electrocatalyst applications
[Press-News.org] Women health sector leaders good for a nation’s wealth, health, innovation, ethicsBut major underused resource despite their unique and positive impact, say researchers More and sustained investment needed to maximize their potential and reap benefits