This editorial discusses a collection of papers examining gender across a range of health policy andsystems contexts, from access to services, governance, health financing, and human resources forhealth. The papers interrogate differing health issues and core health systems functions using a genderlens. Together they produce new knowledge on the multiple impacts of gender on health experiencesand demonstrate the importance of gender analyses and gender sensitive interventions forpromoting well-being and health systems strengthening. The findings from these papers collectivelyshow how gender intersects with other axes of inequity within specific contexts to shape experiencesof health and health seeking within households, communities and health systems; illustrate howgender power relations affect access to important resources; and demonstrate that gender norms,poverty and patriarchy interplay to limit women’s choices and chances both within household interactionsand within the health sector. Health systems researchers have a responsibility to promote theincorporation of gender analyses into their studies in order to inform more strategic, effective andequitable health systems interventions, programmes, and policies. Responding to gender inequitablesystems, institutions, and services in this sector requires an ‘all hands-on deck’ approach. We cannotclaimto take a ‘people-centred approach’ to health systems if the status quo continues.
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