By Fatima Saka
Health experts have warned that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is being worsened by gender inequalities, gender-based violence, and social norms that limit women’s access to healthcare, stressing that addressing these factors is critical to controlling drug-resistant infections globally.
AMR occurs when microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites become resistant to medicines designed to treat them. Experts say the growing crisis is driven largely by the misuse and overuse of medicines across human health, livestock, agriculture, and environmental sectors.
According to experts, the continued misuse of antibiotics threatens progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as resistant infections make common diseases harder to treat and increase the risk of severe illness and death.
A former chief scientist of the World Health Organization, Soumya Swaminathan, said tackling gender-based violence is essential to reducing AMR because violence often prevents women from accessing timely healthcare.
She explained that many women face intimate partner violence, sexual abuse, or domestic violence, which can lead to untreated infections. Because of fear, stigma, or limited autonomy within households, many women delay seeking medical care or fail to complete antibiotic treatments, increasing the risk of drug-resistant infections.
Swaminathan noted that infections linked to sexual violence—including sexually transmitted infections, urinary tract infections, reproductive tract infections, and pelvic inflammatory disease—often lead to increased antibiotic use, especially when treatment is incomplete or incorrect.
A survivor of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis and member of the WHO Task Force of AMR Survivors, Bhakti Chavan, said stigma surrounding diseases such as tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS discourages many women from seeking diagnosis and treatment.
She said in many communities women diagnosed with these diseases face judgment that questions their character, marriage prospects, and social status, forcing some to hide their illness or discontinue treatment early to avoid discrimination.
An associate professor at the University of Cape Town, Esmita Charani, said power imbalances between patients and healthcare providers, combined with gender norms, further complicate access to treatment.
According to her, women often prioritize the healthcare needs of other family members over their own and frequently appear at hospitals as caregivers rather than patients. Financial constraints within households can also result in male family members receiving treatment before women.
Similarly, principal research scientist at the Indian School of Business, Deepshikha Bhateja, said cultural norms related to menstruation, caregiving roles, pregnancy, and financial control often limit women’s access to sanitation, education, and healthcare services.
These limitations increase women’s vulnerability to infections and reduce their ability to access appropriate diagnosis and treatment, which can lead to increased antibiotic use and accelerate antimicrobial resistance.
Experts also emphasized the need for an intersectional approach to tackling AMR, noting that gender intersects with other factors such as poverty, migration status, race, and occupation.
Former youth engagement consultant at ReAct Asia Pacific, Salman Khan, said antimicrobial resistance should not be viewed solely as a scientific problem but also as a social issue shaped by power, access to resources, and whose voices influence decision-making.
Experts further stressed the critical role women can play in combating irrational antibiotic use.
Founding president of the Pan Arab Women Physicians Association, Mayssam Akroush, said women occupy key positions as caregivers, educators, healthcare professionals, and decision-makers in families, giving them the ability to influence responsible antibiotic use.
She said educating women on the proper use of antibiotics could significantly reduce misuse, as mothers often decide whether children receive antibiotics.
Experts also called for stronger gender-responsive policies in national action plans on AMR, including the integration of gender-based violence indicators and improved access to sexual and reproductive health services.
Chairperson of the Global AMR Media Alliance, Shobha Shukla, warned that the continued rise of drug-resistant tuberculosis threatens global efforts to eliminate the disease by 2030.
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She noted that despite scientific advances, the number of drug-resistant TB cases globally remains high due to the misuse, underuse, and overuse of tuberculosis medicines.
According to Shukla, integrating gender-responsive approaches into AMR strategies—such as those outlined in the WHO’s guidance on gender inequalities in national action plans—will be essential to ensuring effective prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of drug-resistant infections worldwide.
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