See the published version of this article at Conflict and Health.
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“Having more women humanitarian leaders will help transform the humanitarian system”: Challenges and Opportunities for Women Leaders in Conflict and Humanitarian Health
Kristen Meagher
King's College London
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8060-0505
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
View the published version at Conflict and Health.
Background: It is estimated that over 40 percent of the half a million humanitarian workers who provide frontline care during emergencies, wars and disasters, are women. Women are at the forefront of improving health for conflict-affected populations through service delivery, education and capacity strengthening, advocacy and research. Women are also disproportionately affected by conflict and humanitarian emergencies. The growing evidence base demonstrating excess female morbidity and mortality reflects the necessity of evaluating the role of women in leadership driving health research, policy and programmatic interventions in conflict-related humanitarian contexts. Despite global commitments to improving gender equality, the issue of women leaders in conflict and humanitarian health has been given little or no attention. The aim of this paper focuses on three domains: importance, barriers and opportunities for women leaders in conflict and humanitarian health. Following thematic analysis of the material collected, we discuss the following themes: barriers of women’s leadership domain at societal level, and organisational level, which is subcategorized into culture and strategy. Building on the available opportunities and initiatives and on inspirational experiences of the limited number of women leaders in this field, recommendations for empowering and supporting women’s leadership in conflict health are presented.
Methods: A desk-based literature review of academic and grey sources was conducted followed by thematic analysis.
Results: There is very limited evidence on women leaders in conflict and humanitarian health. Some data shows that women have leadership skills that help to support more inclusive solutions which are incredibly important in this sector. However, deeply imbedded discrimination against women at the organisational, cultural, social, financial and political levels is exacerbated in conflict which makes it more challenging for women to progress in such settings.
Conclusion: Advocating for women leaders in conflict and health in the humanitarian sector, governmental bodies, academia and the global health community is crucial to increasing effective interventions that adequately address the complexity and diversity of humanitarian crises.
Keywords
Women, Leaders, Diversity, Inclusion, Health, Conflict, Humanitarian
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CURRENT STATUS: Published
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Posted 04 Dec, 2020
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Editorial decision: Minor revision
On 17 Nov, 2020
Editor assigned
On 15 Nov, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 15 Nov, 2020
Editor invited
On 15 Nov, 2020
No comments provided
Editorial decision: Minor revision
On 06 Nov, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 25 Oct, 2020
Editor assigned
On 15 Oct, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 15 Oct, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 15 Oct, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 14 Oct, 2020
Editor invited
On 14 Oct, 2020
No comments provided
Review #2 received
Received 17 Aug, 2020
Editorial decision: Major revision
On 17 Aug, 2020
Reviewer #3 agreed
On 16 Jul, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 09 Jul, 2020
Reviewer #2 agreed
On 30 Jun, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 01 Jun, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 18 May, 2020
Editor assigned
On 07 May, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 06 May, 2020
Editor invited
On 06 May, 2020
First submitted
On 05 May, 2020
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This preprint is under consideration at Conflict and Health. A preprint is a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Learn more about In Review
Research
“Having more women humanitarian leaders will help transform the humanitarian system”: Challenges and Opportunities for Women Leaders in Conflict and Humanitarian Health
Kristen Meagher
King's College London
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8060-0505
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
Peer Review Timeline
CURRENT STATUS: Published
Version 4
Posted 04 Dec, 2020
No comments provided
Editorial decision: Minor revision
On 17 Nov, 2020
Editor assigned
On 15 Nov, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 15 Nov, 2020
Editor invited
On 15 Nov, 2020
No comments provided
Editorial decision: Minor revision
On 06 Nov, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 25 Oct, 2020
Editor assigned
On 15 Oct, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 15 Oct, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 15 Oct, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 14 Oct, 2020
Editor invited
On 14 Oct, 2020
No comments provided
Review #2 received
Received 17 Aug, 2020
Editorial decision: Major revision
On 17 Aug, 2020
Reviewer #3 agreed
On 16 Jul, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 09 Jul, 2020
Reviewer #2 agreed
On 30 Jun, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 01 Jun, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 18 May, 2020
Editor assigned
On 07 May, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 06 May, 2020
Editor invited
On 06 May, 2020
First submitted
On 05 May, 2020
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
View the published version at Conflict and Health.
Background: It is estimated that over 40 percent of the half a million humanitarian workers who provide frontline care during emergencies, wars and disasters, are women. Women are at the forefront of improving health for conflict-affected populations through service delivery, education and capacity strengthening, advocacy and research. Women are also disproportionately affected by conflict and humanitarian emergencies. The growing evidence base demonstrating excess female morbidity and mortality reflects the necessity of evaluating the role of women in leadership driving health research, policy and programmatic interventions in conflict-related humanitarian contexts. Despite global commitments to improving gender equality, the issue of women leaders in conflict and humanitarian health has been given little or no attention. The aim of this paper focuses on three domains: importance, barriers and opportunities for women leaders in conflict and humanitarian health. Following thematic analysis of the material collected, we discuss the following themes: barriers of women’s leadership domain at societal level, and organisational level, which is subcategorized into culture and strategy. Building on the available opportunities and initiatives and on inspirational experiences of the limited number of women leaders in this field, recommendations for empowering and supporting women’s leadership in conflict health are presented.
Methods: A desk-based literature review of academic and grey sources was conducted followed by thematic analysis.
Results: There is very limited evidence on women leaders in conflict and humanitarian health. Some data shows that women have leadership skills that help to support more inclusive solutions which are incredibly important in this sector. However, deeply imbedded discrimination against women at the organisational, cultural, social, financial and political levels is exacerbated in conflict which makes it more challenging for women to progress in such settings.
Conclusion: Advocating for women leaders in conflict and health in the humanitarian sector, governmental bodies, academia and the global health community is crucial to increasing effective interventions that adequately address the complexity and diversity of humanitarian crises.