AI-powered text analysis will be deployed in a new nationwide review into how Australian universities teach sex and gender in medical education. Federal funding of $385,000 to conduct the audit will go to the Centre for Sex & Gender Equity in Health & Medicine, founded by The George Institute for Global Health in partnership with Deakin University, UNSW Sydney and the UNSW Australian Human Rights Institute. Findings from the analysis are due in December this year.
Funded as part of the National Women's Health Advisory Council's (NWHAC) 2025 workplan, this landmark project will assess how well sex and gender considerations are integrated across Australia's university-level health and medical training, supporting the broader aim of eliminating gender bias in healthcare education and improving health outcomes for all Australians, regardless of sex or gender.
"This review is a critical step in addressing the inequities we see in our healthcare system. By enabling a national, formal audit to be conducted with this funding, the Australian Government will have a clear picture of the biases and gaps in both the foundational and further training that our future healthcare professionals are receiving.
The information will help light a pathway to embed sex and gender literacy into medical and allied health training, providing the basis for a far more equitable and evidence-based healthcare system.
By:Bronwyn Graham
Director, Centre for Sex & Gender Equity in Health & Medicine
Currently, Australian medical schools are not required to include sex and gender differences in their curricula or textbooks, meaning medical education perpetuates the biases in healthcare where male biology and experience has historically been assumed as the norm or baseline.¹ This causes significant disadvantage principally impacting women and girls, people with variations of sex characteristics (intersex people), trans and gender diverse people and - in some cases - men and boys as well. Women are more likely than men to face delayed diagnoses, have their symptoms dismissed or misinterpreted, and receive inadequate care - leading to poorer outcomes across a range of conditions.3
For example, the Australian Medical Students' Association (AMSA) told the 2024 Victorian Government Inquiry into women's pain that half of medical students feel underprepared to diagnose and treat chronic pain in women, with nearly as many witnessing dismissive attitudes toward female patients, meaning gender-sensitive pain education should be integral to undergraduate and continued professional training.2
An estimated 10,000 curricula across seven Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA)-accredited disciplines will be reviewed in the audit: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, Medicine, Midwifery, Nursing, Paramedicine, Pharmacy, and Psychology.
Using AI-powered text analysis, auditors will search for sex- and gender-related terms across course descriptions and learning outcomes. These 'hits' will then be reviewed in context to determine how and where sex and gender considerations are embedded, or missing, in health and medical curricula.
The review team will work closely with diverse research communities, incorporating inclusive language and terminology throughout, while engaging with university academics, regulatory bodies, and health advisory councils to ensure data are accurate. The project team will then offer recommendations for universities and colleges to address gaps and improve their curricula.
References
1. Merone L, et al. Representation of Women and Women's Health in Australian Medical School Course Outlines, Curriculum Requirements, and Selected Core Clinical Textbooks. Women's health reports. 2024;5(1):276-85. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11002328
2. Australian Medical Students' Association. Australia's Future Doctors Highlight Concerning Gaps in Women's Pain Curricula Across Medical Schools - Australian Medical Students Association. AMSA.org.au. 2024. https://amsa.org.au/media-release/australias-future-doctors-highlight-concerning-gaps-in-womens-pain-curricula-across-medical-schools/
3. Jenkinson B, et al. National Women's Health Advisory Council - #EndGenderBias Survey Detailed Report. 2024. https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/2025-01/endgenderbias-survey-results-detailed-report_0.pdf
