A pain expert has called for a NSW government inquiry into women's pain, amid concern that the healthcare system is biased towards men.
Fiona Hodson, a pain specialist, said a Victorian government inquiry into women's pain could have national implications. Given this, Ms Hodson said a similar inquiry on the issue would be valuable in NSW.
"Some politicians in NSW might want to take on this cause. My objective is to get this before the eyes of government to put it into their planning," Ms Hodson said.
The Victorian inquiry's terms of reference state: "Medical gender bias routinely leads to a denial of pain". This led to women suffering from a "lack of pain relief and associated treatment".
Women were often wasting time and money "trying to navigate a healthcare system designed for and around men".
Ms Hodson, vice president of Chronic Pain Australia, said she witnessed "a lot of medical gaslighting in the system". "Women are disbelieved and told 'it's just menstrual issues so get on with it'," she said.
Chronic Pain Australia's 2023 national survey described the experience of female respondents seeking health treatment for chronic pain.
Words used to express how the health system treated them included: "Gaslit, judged, patronised, worthless, unheard, ridiculed and shamed".
Some were told they were imagining their pain and labelled as a "hypochondriac", "too young to be unwell", "a drug addict" or "just fat and lazy".
About 48 per cent of these female respondents had thoughts of taking their own life, and 29 per cent experienced thoughts of self-harm.
Ms Hodson, who has specialised in pain management for 26 years, said many women were taking antidepressants and over-the-counter medication due to their pain.
"There are so many psychological and social implications around the impact that pain has," she said.
"I've personally experienced medical misogyny and felt dismissed by medical professionals."
Dr Amanda Cohn, chairwoman of a NSW Parliament health committee, said women's pain wasn't an issue that "starts and stops at the state border".
"As a GP, I have seen how debilitating chronic pain and particularly pelvic pain can be for women," Dr Cohn said.
"I'm sure there will be important lessons for NSW from the evidence that will be heard in Victoria. The huge interest in this issue demonstrates the need for holistic primary care services to be properly funded, equitable and accessible across Australia."
Research shows women generally experience more recurrent pain, severe pain and longer lasting pain than men.
Women were more likely to suffer musculoskeletal, abdominal, head and neck pain. And persistent pelvic pain affects 15 to 25 per cent of women.
Ms Hodson said women also suffer pain from conditions linked to hormones and osteoporosis. "Lots of painful conditions seem to impact women. I'm not saying men shouldn't get treatment, but it's been a long time coming to get recognition of women's pain," she said.
She said government inquiries would help raise awareness of the need for better treatments and more research into women's pain.
