Gender, racial, and ethnic disparities in healthcare can affect patient safety and lead to poor outcomes. This study used actors portraying patients to explore the impact of race and sex on physicians’ decision-making about use of cardiac catheterization for chest pain. Analyses indicate that women and Black patients with chest pain were less likely to be referred for cardiac catheterization compared to white men.

Gender inequities are well-documented in the assessment and treatment of pain. This review summarizes studies on gender differences in experiences and treatment of pain, and assessment of why these differences exist. Findings show there are many reasons for the underappreciation and undertreatment of women’s pain, including cultural expectations for how pain “should” look and attributing women’s pain to emotional or psychological causes.