The second survey carried out by the French Hospital Federation and Ipsos BVA highlights a phenomenon that is still largely invisible: the “health burden” which weighs on women within families. Between domestic responsibilities, screening delays and difficulties in having their pain recognized, the study reveals a complex reality, where women’s health remains a blind spot in the healthcare system.
The silent guardians of family health
In many homes, health management cannot be improvised: appointments with the doctor, renewal of prescriptions, follow-up of treatments, support for children or elderly parents. A daily organization that is often discreet, but essential. And according to the survey by the French Hospital Federation and Ipsos BVA, this responsibility rests overwhelmingly on women.
No less than 92% of them say they take on at least one task alone related to the health of household members. Even more striking: 74% simultaneously take care of making medical appointments, managing treatments and accompanying consultationswithout help from their spouse.
A logistical, mental and emotional burden which does not remain without consequences. Nearly six out of ten women believe that this “health burden” has a negative impact on their well-being and psychological balance. Among mothers under 30, this proportion rises to 78%.
And by dint of looking after everyone’s health, theirs ends up taking second place. The prevention figures are revealing: nearly six out of ten women do not systematically carry out their gynecological check-up examination when it is recommendeda proportion which reaches eight out of ten women under 30. The reasons given paint the picture of a saturated daily life: negligence due to lack of time (29%), feeling of not being concerned (27%), difficulty obtaining an appointment (26%), or even fear of the diagnosis (12%).
In other words, personal prevention often becomes an adjustment variable in already overloaded lives.
When women’s pain is minimized
But the investigation also reveals another reality, even more disturbing: persistent biases in medical care.
- For many women, the consultation is not limited to explaining a symptom. It also involves convincing people that the pain is real. More than two in five women say they have already had their pain minimized or trivialized by a healthcare professional because they were women (43%). An even more common experience among those under 30, where this figure reaches 69%. This trivialization can have concrete consequences: nearly a third of women indicate that they have already been faced with a refusal of painkillers or anesthesia, or insufficient treatment given the intensity of their pain.
- Gynecological consultations themselves are not always free of tension. A third of women say they have already experienced a situation where their consent was not fully respected during a gynecological examination. It may be a gesture made without prior explanation, a lack of information, insufficient respect for privacy, or the presence of a third party not announced during the examination. Even more disturbing, more than one in ten women say they have already wanted to interrupt a gynecological examination without being able to express it at the time.
- The question of reproductive autonomy is not spared. The investigation reveals that 7% of women surveyed say they have already experienced pressure from a health professional regarding a pregnancywhile 14% mention pressure related to contraception.
Figures which remind us of a reality that is still too often ignored: women’s bodies sometimes remain a space of norms and injunctions.
A lack of listening and information throughout life
Over the years, this feeling of not being fully heard accompanies many women on their health journey. Some mention a lack of listening during puberty, others after pregnancy or at the time of menopause. At each stage of reproductive life, there are many questions — and the answers are sometimes insufficient.
The study thus reveals that fewer than three in ten women say they have received information on at least one fertility-related subject during their lifetime : evolution of fertility with age, deadlines for consultation in the event of difficulty conceiving, medically assisted procreation process or possibilities for fertility preservation.
This lack of information fuels uncertainty, sometimes anxiety, and can delay certain medical decisions.
For Zaynab Riet, general delegate of the French Hospital Federation, these results call for collective awareness.
“Women take care of everyone’s health. Our health system must also take better care of them.”.
She continues: “The pivotal part of family care pathways, women make appointments, support and manage treatments for the whole family, due to a lack of sufficient sharing of these responsibilities, to the detriment of their own health. Our survey confirms that personal prevention, although essential to stay in good health, often becomes secondary in daily lives already saturated by a health and mental burden. This discrepancy is not trivial: it creates a real risk of diagnostic delays and loss of opportunity.”
And to recall a fundamental issue for the future of the healthcare system: “No woman should have to be convinced that she is in pain in order for her pain to be recognized and relieved. Better recognizing women’s pain, listening better, better informing and fully integrating these issues into the training of health professionals is a requirement for quality and equity of care.”
A question of public health… and equality
Behind these figures lies a broader reality: women’s health can no longer be considered a peripheral subject.
Because they play a central role in family care pathways, their health also affects that of their loved ones. But when their own needs are relegated to the background, the consequences can be serious: delays in diagnosis, illnesses detected late, suffering insufficiently taken care of…
“This survey reminds us of a collective responsibility: taking better account of women’s health, which is still too often invisible, is a major issue for our health system as well as for equality between women and men.”concludes Zaynab Riet. An obvious fact that still seems to need to be remembered: taking care of women also means taking care of all of society.