Anshika Tiwari
Political Science
June 2025
This paper analyzes ongoing gender inequities in India's healthcare system using feminist theory and the Social Determinants of Health framework, with attention to neurological and reproductive health. Indian women represent half the population, but they are systematically sidelined from clinical research, undertreated and undiagnosed for Alzheimer's, and receive coercive or disrespectful reproductive care, especially if they are rural, Dalit, Muslim, LGBTQ+, or living in poverty. The results of this study point to structural failures in medical education and curriculum, trial design and funding, provider training and care, and policy implementation that perpetuate gender and intersectional inequities and reinforce patriarchal norms. Using models from abroad in the EU, Canada, and Sweden, a set of specific actionable recommendations is offered, such as requiring sex-balanced clinical trials, providing gender-sensitive medical education and curriculum, requiring disaggregated data collection and reporting, and providing equitable digital outreach. The paper contends that genuine change to India's healthcare system requires not only a commitment to gender equity and inclusive policies, but that we must move from tokenism to a structural, feminist, and rights-based approach that recognizes the needs of the marginalised.
942- 948
© Airo Journals 2021
