The concept of gender medicine arises from the idea that differences between the sex concerning health are not only related to individual biological and reproductive characteristics.

The categories of “man” and “woman” defined on the basis of mere biological differences are replaced by the term “gender” in a broader sense of “difference” that includes environmental, social, cultural, and relational factors. For example, it is well known that women have longer lives, perceive a worse health status, but pay more attention to their own health and health prevention than men.

Gender differences appear in the following areas:

• Behaviour – life styles and addictions, as well as individual experience and social role.
• Health status – incidence of many common chronic or infectious diseases, traumas, injuries, and mortality, work-related diseases, mental health, and disability at any age (children, adolescents, elderly people), and disadvantaged population subgroups.
• Use of health care services – prevention (screenings and vaccinations), hospital admissions, emergency medicine, and consumption of medicines.
• Gender-based violence – this phenomenon requires observation and analysis, as well as monitoring and analysing the impact assessment of policy measures.

Health needs of both genders are an important measuring and planning tool for public health interventions.

The regional Commission for gender health in Tuscany
The first regional permanent Commission for gender health-related issues of Italy has been created by the Regional Health Council of Tuscany. The principle underlying its institution is that health is not neutral. Differences between genders must be applied in medicine as well as in other kinds of disciplines to guarantee appropriate treatments to all patients.
The commission aims at educating health professionals to widespread interventions in women’s health, and train health operators to account for patients’ gender as a health determinant, at developing difference-oriented surveys for risk factors, prevention, and treatment.