Context and Need for the Strategy
Health disparities for women have widened, especially due to the pandemic. The 2019 Better for Women report emphasised a life course approach and preventive health interventions. The Women’s Health Strategy aims to reset women’s health by addressing gaps in the NHS services, often forcing women to navigate multiple health professionals for basic care.
Initial Priorities
Focus on long-term health issues like menstruation, contraception, miscarriage, and menopause. These areas impact women’s ability to attend school, work, and fulfil caring responsibilities. Addressing these issues through a ‘one-stop-shop’ model in women’s health hubs can offer convenient, cost-effective care.
Holistic Approach
Improving women’s health extends beyond the health and social care system. Collaboration across all societal sectors is crucial. The strategy is seen as a beginning, adaptable as more is learned from its implementation.
Conclusion
Working together with various stakeholders, this strategy aims to enhance women’s health for the benefit of all society.
– Professor Dame Lesley Regan DBE MD DSc FRCOG
Strategy Overview
The Women’s Health Strategy aims for comprehensive, transformative change in women’s health with a 6-point plan:
- Promoting Women’s Voices: Tackle taboos and stigmas, promote that women are heard by healthcare professionals, and increase their representation in the health and care system.
- Improving Access to Services: Provide accessible services for women’s reproductive health needs, prioritise conditions like endometriosis, and consider women’s needs in conditions affecting both genders.
- Addressing Disparities: Promote equal access and treatment for women regardless of age, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, or location.
- Better Information and Education: Equip women and society with accurate health information and promote healthcare professionals receive proper training.
- Workplace Health: Normalise conversations on periods and menopause to support women’s productivity and highlight good employer practices.
- Supporting Research and Data: Address gaps in women’s health research, improve demographic representation in studies, and promote data is sex-disaggregated.
Priority Areas
- Menstrual health and gynaecological conditions
- Fertility, pregnancy, and postnatal support
- Menopause
- Mental health and wellbeing
- Cancers
- Health impacts of violence against women and girls
- Healthy ageing and long-term conditions
Key Actions
- Ban cosmetic surgery ads targeting under-18s
- Invest £302 million in family hubs and the Start for Life programme
- Provide protections through the Domestic Abuse Act 2021
- Abolish the tampon tax and provide free sanitary products in schools, colleges, and hospitals
- Introduce the Online Safety Bill to restrict harmful online content
Personalised Care and Training Importance
In the context of personalised care, recognising the unique needs and experiences of women is crucial to the success of the Women’s Health Strategy. Misogyny awareness training and women’s health inequality training are essential components to support this mission, as they educate healthcare professionals on the systemic biases and barriers women face.
By integrating these trainings, we can foster a healthcare environment where providers are not only aware of but also actively working to dismantle these inequalities, ultimately leading to more empathetic, informed, and effective care. This approach aligns with the strategy’s goals of improving access to services, addressing disparities, and promoting that women’s voices are heard, thereby fostering a healthcare environment that truly meets the diverse needs of all women.