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There is increasing evidence that outcomes of health care differ by patient characteristics, such as gender and ethnicity. If evidence-based medicine is to improve quality of care for all patients, it is essential to take this diversity into account when designing clinical studies. So far, this notion has mainly been translated into recommendations for including minority populations in trials. We argue that a more comprehensive view of the production of diversity-sensitive clinical evidence is needed, one that takes heterogeneity as a starting point in research. We call for a mix of methodological approaches aimed at identifying diversity issues that matter and analysing the impact of these diversities on clinical outcomes. Institutional changes are necessary to support this methodological reform.

In 2008, the then Chief Medical Officer commissioned Baroness Deech to chair an Independent Working Group looking at the position and participation of women in the medical profession. We update and extend the Deech report to cover academic medicine in the UK. In doing so, we are not offering a systematic or exhaustive review of teh data. Rather, we describe female participation retes in medicine and academic medicine based on secondary analysis. we demonstrate that although women are equally represented in medicine, they are under-represented in academic medicine. We conclude by arguing that, although progress has been made, inequality in academic medicine matters because: (a) it is a waste of public investment due to a loss of research talent; (b) as a consequence, some areas of medicine are under-researched at a cost to patients and society; and (c) discriminatory practices and unconscious bias continue to occur.

Emerging infections, many of them zoonotic, are caused by a wide variety of pathogens with global distribution. Their impact on women is similarly diverse. Pathogens that were previously rare are emerging in recent years to cause disease in new populations, and global travel facilitates their rapid spread across continents. Finally, human encroachment on previously remote areas has brought people into contact with zoonotic diseases and vectors never before characterized. Although systematic study of rare outbreaks can be challenging, our knowledge of emerging pathogens and their differential effects on women, including those who are pregnant, has started to accumulate. We discuss the effects on women of lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus, West Nile virus, SARS coronavirus, avian influenza A (H5N1), virus, and the viral hemorrhagic fevers. We also explore the spirochetal illnesses and Chagas disease as they pertain to the pregnant patient. Finally, we review the potential impact of candidate bioterror agents on the female population, and address related issues of prophylaxis and therapy.

Inclusive leaders get the best out of all their people, helping their organisations to succeed in today’s complex, diverse and global environment. Through their skills in adaptability, building relationships and developing talent, inclusive leaders are able to increase performance and innovation.

Despite the valuable contribution of inclusive leadership to business success, its core competencies are rare in organisations today. The Five-Point Framework in this report sets out the approach required to develop and embed inclusive leadership. It is the result of an 18-month action research project carried out with:

The British Army
BAE Systems
Citi
Fujitsu
HM Revenue and Customs

The research sets out:

Why inclusive leadership is critical to building the trust, influence collaboration and diversity needed for organisations to thrive and grow
What the competencies of inclusive leadership are
How organisations can close the inclusive leadership gap