Gendered Workplace Violence in the PHC Workforce Part I - Policy Frameworks for Action

The Primary Health Care (PHC) workforce faces significant challenges, with violence against health workers emerging as a major concern, especially in the current context of polycrises. Such crises, ranging from pandemics to socio-economic upheavals, not only amplify existing healthcare pressures but also escalate the vulnerabilities of healthcare workers to violence. According to WHO, 8 – 38% of health workers, especially women, face physical violence and many more are subjected to or threatened with verbal aggression, reflecting deep-rooted structural gender and power inequalities.  Despite this, efforts to understand the gendered dimensions of workplace violence to inform mitigation strategies remains largely invisible.

The first webinar of our two-part webinar series will focus on understanding and addressing gendered workplace violence in the PHC workforce amidst ongoing global crises. This session will explore the conceptual frameworks of violence against women and policy frameworks for effective action. The overarching aim of this webinar series is to understand the gendered dimensions of workplace violence in the primary healthcare workforce, looking at ways structural gender and power imbalances threaten the safety and well-being of female health workers. This foundational understanding will prepare us to explore the practical experiences of workplace violence in different country contexts in the subsequent webinar.