Digital Platforms aid in breaking the Bias against Women & empower them, digitisation is revolutionising the women’s healthcare like never before. Digital connect ensures confidentiality and anonymity, this is the key to address several problems in the youth of today including mental health issues says Dr. Hema Divakar.
Gender equality is still a myth in this world because men still have not been able to overcome their biases against women. But the digital world has come as an equalizer when it comes to accessing information and facilities, according to Dr. Hema Divakar, a pioneer in women’s health care.
This year’s theme for International Women’s Day is Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow, which is celebrated on March 8. The United Nations has rightly chosen the topic with the tagline “BreakTheBias,” she said.
As per the Gender Social Norms Index released by the UNDP in 2020, she recalled that close to 90% of men and women hold some sort of bias against women, providing new clues to the invisible barriers women face in achieving equality and a potential path forward to shattering the glass ceiling. Women have the same access to life’s basic needs as men. Maternal mortality has decreased by 45% since 1990. But the gender gaps are still all too obvious in other areas. The fight about gender equality is a story of bias and prejudices, a UNDP official mentioned, Dr. Hema said.
She said that it is time to work towards seeing a world that is free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. One step towards this is to go completely digital providing healthcare for women. This is in addition to the standard physical healthcare practices. There are gaps between access to health care and affordability. It is not easy to access for various reasons. For example, the cost, geographical location are a few deterring factors for easy accessing health care.
When such is the prevailing situation, digital platforms, help in bringing medical facilities closer to women. Capacity building can happen faster through digital intervention. Asian research for skill transfer has been successfully doing this for the past many years. When we raise demand, we should ensure good quality supply is available. There should be no barrier between the two. Digital healthcare is bridging the gap between the two, “she explained.
Dr. Hema is CEO of Asian Research & Training For Skill Transfer (ARTIST for Her) and Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India (FOGSI) Ambassador to FIGO, based in the UK. She has been a practicing doctor who has specialized in women’s health care as well as promoting health care through digital platforms.
