A video showing female medical workers from Gansu province collectively having their heads shaved before being despatched to help fight the coronavirus outbreak gathered traction online this month. The story of a nine-month pregnant medical worker who had recently suffered a miscarriage but went back to work also sparked a huge backlash for being a show of propaganda and setting a dangerous precedent.
Last month, the BBC spoke to one nurse who said hospital staff were not allowed to eat, rest or use the toilet during their 10-hour shifts.
While that applies to all hospital staff, women also shoulder another layer of discrimination.
Jiang Jinjing, the woman behind the Coronavirus Sister Support campaign, which is trying to deliver feminine hygiene products to front line workers in Hubei province, recently told online media publication Sixth Tone that women's menstruation needs are being overlooked.
Writing on her Weibo page , she said: "As of 28 February, 481,377 period pants, 303,939 disposable pants and 86,400 pads have been donated."
Jiang Jinjing says not many people thought of providing the right period products for the tens of thousands of female medical workers.
After the volunteers' campaign was applauded by many on Chinese social media, the state-run China's Women's Development Foundation said it would send menstrual products to female medical workers.
4. Migrant domestic helpers
An estimated 400,000 women work as domestic staff in Hong Kong, most of them coming from the Philippines and Indonesia. These women are growing increasingly anxious about not only their precarious work status, but also their ability to find protective items such as face masks and hand sanitisers.
"The panic buying of masks has driven prices so high that they are no longer affordable for migrant workers," says Cynthia Abdon-Tellez, general manager for the charity Mission for Migrant workers in Hong Kong.
"Not all migrant workers get masks from their employers, we have to buy them on our own expenses and it's very expensive. Some, who get masks from their employers, will use the same mask for a week," one Indonesian migrant worker in HK, Eka Septi Susanti told BBC Indonesia.
Ms Abdon-Tellez says her organisation has started collecting masks to distribute to migrant workers, where employers aren't providing them.
"The Indonesian consulate distributed free masks but it's not enough - it took an hour [to wait in line] to get three masks. We need at least six masks for a week," says Sring Sringatin, the chairperson of the Migrant Workers Association in HK.
Advice from the Hong Kong government has also resulted in frustration among foreign domestic workers in the city. The government urged them to stay indoors on their one day off a week, in order to safeguard their health and reduce the risk of contamination.
This removes precious social time from women living far away from their own families and loved ones, and puts them at risk of exploitation.
"Migrant workers who stay home on off days because they can't go out are still working," says Ms Sringatin.
"They will cook for their employers, babysit or care for the employers' parents, without compensation. Those who insisted on taking a day off were threatened with being dismissed."
It's not just the women themselves that are impacted. Millions of people rely on their income that they send home to the Philippines and Indonesia.
Personal remittances from overseas Filipino workers reached a record high of $33.5bn (£25.7bn) in 2019.
ING Bank Manila senior economist Nicholas Mapa says remittances from Filipino workers overseas account for roughly 9% of GDP, and the effect of the virus will likely be felt by the Philippine economy.
"With consumers staying indoors, limiting demand for various services industries where Filipinos are generally employed, it is hurting their chances to send home funds. Travel restrictions and mobility are also affected , threatening pay checks and even job security," he told the BBC.
5. Longer term economic impact
Economists and governments are discussing predictions that the global economy could grow at its slowest rate since 2009 because of the outbreak.
"Overall, the coronavirus has an immense impact on travel, production and consumption, which has an impact on many sectors and thus women and men alike," says Christina Maags, a lecturer at SOAS University of London.
"However, low income women are particularly affected by the slowdown in consumption as they tend to be employed in hospitality, retail or other service industries."
In China, "since many migrant women do not have employment contracts, the coronavirus has meant that they do not receive any income - if they do not work, they do not get paid", she says.
"With no social security to fall back on, they face the dilemma of either returning to work and potentially getting sick or needing to pay for other forms of accommodation. Alternatively, they might be forced to stay at home and live off the little savings they have. This puts them in a very difficult situation".
And some South East Asian garment factories, which rely on raw materials from China, are being forced to close.
According to the government in Myanmar, more than 10 factories have closed since January, though the labour ministry said not all were linked to the coronavirus.
Ma Chit Su told BBC Burmese that her family had depended on her wages from her now-closed garment factory job.
"I don't care about compensation, I just want my job back at the factory," she says.
From UN Women's perspective these are the some of the women who will suffer the biggest impact, including daily wage earners, small business owners and those working in informal sectors.
"The differential needs of women and men in long-and-medium-term recovery efforts also need to be considered," says Mohammad Naciri, regional director of UN Women Asia and the Pacific.
"Women are playing an indispensable role in the fight against the outbreak - as health care workers, as scientists and researchers, as social mobilisers, as community peace builders and connectors, and as caregivers.
"It is essential to ensure that women's voices are heard and recognised."
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