The case in summary: A new study shows that men and women receive different treatment for pain in emergency departments, even when the pain level is the same. Researchers from the US and Israel found that women are often perceived as exaggerated or hysterical when they complain of pain, while men are seen as more stoic. The study showed that among female patients, 38 percent received some form of pain relief, compared to 47 percent of male patients with similar symptoms. There was a 10 percent lower chance of women being asked to assess their own pain at all compared to men, and women had to wait 30 minutes longer on average for help. The differential treatment was independent of the health personnel’s gender. The researchers believe that the findings are startling and important, and that greater justice must be worked for in the future. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. Pain can be all-consuming – for some, absolutely damning. In the United States alone, 50 million people report daily experiences of pain. Then you are at the mercy of the help you get. But according to a new study, the treatment you receive in an emergency department can vary greatly depending on gender. Although the pain level is described exactly the same. Researchers from the USA and Israel have come to this conclusion. Alex Gileles-Hillel works as a doctor in Jerusalem. He says men and women are often perceived differently when they complain of pain. – Women are seen as hysterical or exaggerating, while men are perceived as more stoic. Alex Gileles-Hillel is one of the researchers behind the study. He says they found a clear difference in how men’s and women’s pain is treated in an emergency department. Photo: Hadassah Hospital Underestimated The researchers behind the new study believe that women’s pain is largely underestimated. They found this out by examining patient records from more than 20,000 people. – We analyzed data from emergency departments in the USA and Israel. We found the same bias in both countries, says Shoham Choshen-Hillel to news. She is an associate professor in the Department of Organizational Behavior at the Hebrew University Business School. The researchers focused primarily on pain without obvious causes, such as headaches or chest pains. Among female patients, 38 percent received some form of pain relief, compared to 47 percent of male patients with similar symptoms. Shoham Choshen-Hillel is an associate professor at the Hebrew University Business School. Photo: Hebrew University Business School On a scale of 1 to 10, how much pain are you in? Feeling pain is a subjective feeling. Therefore, patients who come to the hospital are often asked to make an assessment. Preferably on a scale from 1-10. Based on the answer, doctors and nurses make decisions about whether to give painkillers, and what strength these should have. But according to the new study, discrimination already starts here. Because there was a 10 per cent less chance that women were asked to assess their own pain at all compared to men. And after this assessment had possibly been taken, women had to wait an average of 30 minutes longer for help. They were also less likely to receive pain medication in the meantime. The trend was independent of the gender of the nurse or doctor, the researchers write. Visual analogue scale (VAS) is used as an aid to express pain intensity. The smiley faces are used for children and others who do not have a full understanding of numbers. Photo: The Norwegian Medical Association Always favored the man In an additional test, 109 healthcare workers were presented with a case describing a patient with severe back pain. The patient himself assessed his own pain as 9 out of 10. The participants received identical information about the person they were to assess – only gender varied. When the patient was a woman, the professionals believed that the average pain was 72 out of 100. When they thought the patient was a man, the average was 80 out of 100. Lill Sverresdatter Larsen is a leader in the Norwegian Nurses’ Association. She says that this is not a new topic. – In 2001, we got our own medical ethical guidelines in Norway which specified that women should not be excluded from medical research based on gender. This also applies to research on painkillers. Paracetamol is an example of a pain-relieving medicine that works differently on women and men. Attempts have been made to get this information into the joint catalogue. She also believes there is no reason to believe that you would get different results in Norway. – We know from several Nordic studies that the perception and reporting of pain in women and men are different. The Women’s Health Committee presented its 75 measures last year. We support the committee’s demand for more research on health from a gender perspective. Lill Sverresdatter Larsen is a trained nurse, has a master’s degree in health sciences and a doctorate in health science. She was elected leader of the Norwegian Nurses’ Association in 2019. Photo: CF-Wesenberg / Kolonihaven – Won’t discriminate Jon Sigurd Riis is a senior physician and medical manager in the emergency department at Ullevål hospital. He thinks the study is exciting. – It is an interesting discovery, because you have an intention not to treat people differently. But before you do such a study, you don’t know the answer. Such a study will shed light on issues that one may not be aware of, he says. He says Norway is a little different to the USA and Israel when it comes to visits to emergency departments. Because in Norway, patients are most often screened via the primary healthcare service before arriving at the hospital. This is not the case in the two countries studied. – We like to think that we treat the sexes equally in Norway, but we cannot say that with certainty, says Riis. The head doctor personally does not think it is difficult to distinguish between gender and pain, but says there can be greater challenges and differences in personality and culture. He believes that a similar study on Norwegian conditions would have been interesting. Major consequences Pain is undoubtedly something that affects our everyday lives, but it can also say something about the mental and physical health of a population. If pain is not treated correctly, it has the potential to develop into chronic disorders, contribute to addiction and lead to increased healthcare costs, the researchers write. Therefore, they believe that the new findings are both startling and important. And that a job must be done to ensure greater justice in the future. Published 21.08.2024, at 05.32
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Women receive less painkillers and worse treatment than men in emergency departments – news Trøndelag – Local news, TV and radio
