Fit for Women? Safe and decent PPE for women health and care workers

One of the many gender inequities in the health and care workforce that COVID-19 has exposed is around the fit and design of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). PPE is not fit for women, while shortages in most countries have contributed to stress and mortality among the majority women workforce on the frontlines.

Following the publication of a groundbreaking new report, Fit for Women? Safe and decent PPE for women health and care workers, Women in Global Health and The Johnson & Johnson Center for Health Worker Innovation are hosting a high-level virtual event on January 25th at 14:00-15:00 CET to explore the policy challenges and solutions around PPE.

Against the backdrop of WHO’s Executive Board, the event will feature government and UN speakers alongside women health workers to consider the report’s findings and recommendations. International journalist Femi Oke will moderate the event, which will also include insider testimonials from the frontline, opening remarks from award-winning bestselling writer and campaigner Caroline Criado Perez and Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, Chief Scientist at the World Health Organization, as a panelist.

Key issues to be discussed will include how the design of PPE can be improved for women health and care workers, as well as how to address global inequities in PPE access, with a focus on how to increase demand and supply of appropriate PPE for women at country level, especially in contexts where vaccination rates remain unacceptably low and thus PPE is even more critical for frontline workers.