Representation of Women in Healthcare: Preliminary Findings, Trends and Considerations for Impact Investors
Summary
This brief investigates the representation of women founders among healthcare companies receiving impact investments using data collected in the Global Impact Investment Network (GIIN) healthcare benchmark.
While significant progress has been made in addressing gender disparities in healthcare, women continue to face significant barriers. Women remain underrepresented in medical trials, underserved by existing treatments and are often dismissed by their providers regarding pain concerns; intersections of gender with race and class exacerbate these trends.
This analysis offers an early look at emerging patterns that raise important questions for the field. By benchmarking key performance indicators such as women’s representation in healthcare entrepreneurship, investors can better contextualize their impact and understand what “good” looks like. As more investors share data, the insights will deepen, helping to shape strategies that close gender gaps in healthcare innovation and impact investing.
This research is developed by the GIIN with support from Investing in Women; it is originally published in the GIIN’s website.
Highlights
Some of the key findings from the report include:
- Women comprise just 11% of founding teams among healthcare investees represented in the benchmark.
- Women founders are most represented in virtual medical settings, preventative medicine and diagnostic medicine. Representation is highest in virtual care models (33%) and lowest in hospital-based offerings (2%).
- 81% of companies analyzed had no women on their founding teams.
