Government Consultation on Women's Health

[CCPforPM]

www.gov.uk/government/consultations/womens-health-strategy-call-for-evidence/womens-health-strategy-call-for-evidence?utm_campaign=Invisible%20Women&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Revue%20newsletter

Hope the link works (Originally from the wonderful Caroline Criado Perez's newsletter - sign up, it's brilliant and hilarious!)

Government Consultation on Women's Health.

1. Maximising women’s health in the workplace

Women make up 51% of the population, and 72% of women aged 16 to 64 are in employment. In health and social care, the proportion of women in the workforce is even higher, with 77% of the NHS workforce and 82% of the social care workforce being female.

There is some evidence that female-specific health conditions such as heavy menstrual bleeding, endometriosis, pregnancy-related issues and the menopause can affect women’s workforce participation, productivity and outcomes.

1. Ensuring research, evidence and data support improvements in women’s health

We have a world-class research and development system in the UK. However, we know that women have been under-represented in research

How to respond
The aim of this call for evidence is to inform the priorities, content and actions within the Women’s Health Strategy.

The easiest way to participate in the call for evidence as an individual is by completing the public survey. This will help us better understand women’s experiences of health, and the health and care system.

There is also an easy read version of the online survey.

@chillied

That was quite a refreshing read to see Matt Hancock and Nadine dorries use the word woman so frequently and as far as I could tell on a quick read, meaning females each time they used the word.

Yes woman woman women all over the place! How refreshing and lovely to see. It’s a bit shit that we’re so surprised and pleased to see the words woman and women being used in reference to women’s health though!

Done. Filling in consultations etc and digging for crowdfunders are my main feminist activities these days. Oh for a happy noisy demo, in the streets with thousands of women. But in my heart I'm scrambling onto high places to plant the suffragette colours where everyone can see them.
Now to buy some stickers.

Thanks *thinkingaboutLangCleg.

Transcript of The menopause debate in parliament yesterday, Westminster Hall Wednesday 9 June 2021
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2021-06-09/debates/39E985EC-04FB-4F3E-99FD-3A549D5180C4/MenopausalSymptomsSupport

Government research briefing Support for people experiencing menopausal symptoms:
commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cdp-2021-0078/

Carolyn Harris who organised the menopause debate has been speaking about it for at least 3 years and points out it affects one fifth of the population at any point in time. She also says:

"Women are suffering unnecessarily, and while some barely notice any changes, for others the suffering is unbearable—stressful, debilitating and completely life-changing. Despite that, many doctors complete their training and leave university with absolutely no education about menopause at all. I am fairly confident that no other medical condition set to impact the lives of more than 50% of the population would be left out in that way."

bump

The deadline is on Sunday

I have completed it - felt quite cathartic having a rant about my (hideous) experience of the labour ward!

And bumping

Only thing that annoyed me was the gender identity question - how to answer when you don’t have one?

Only thing that annoyed me was the gender identity question - how to answer when you don’t have one?

Agree re the gender Q, fortunately you can do the survey without answering questions and just answer the ones you want to. thank you for ranting about your labour ward experience 💐

Closes on Sunday
This consultation closes at 11:45pm on 13 June 2021
www.gov.uk/government/consultations/womens-health-strategy-call-for-evidence/womens-health-strategy-call-for-evidence

I mentioned lack of sex-based data collection as being a specifically misogynistic but in general sexist failure of many public sector datasets within the NHS and other health related areas, in my response.

It contributes to lack of research data and therefore stops developments of new treatments if you have skewed research data because you fudged asking about sex by only asking about ‘gender’.
Understandably some people will give a ‘gender’ question a gender identity response. Surveys should ask for biological sex, then ask about ‘gender identity’ separately, if relevant to what they need to know. You can’t change sex and it’s often going to be medically relevant for organisations like the NHS to know it. I think it’s a total failure of duty that they (and many others) often don’t seem to grasp this.

We should all be totally free to express our gender views (if we have them) however we wish.. but also we have a collective interest (and I would say then a responsibility) in ensuring we have sex-based datasets available for the good of ourselves and each other.

Emotional validation-based datasets are useless for analysing for biological answers, because medical reality affects us all regardless of our views when it comes to sex-based distribution of disease or health needs.

historical lack of research on the side-effects on women's bodies is a massive issue that's hopefully now recognised, but analysing female data will be impossible if it isn't captured in the first place.

A study from the University of Leeds found women were 50% more likely to be misdiagnosed when having a heart attack purely because research centres around the symptoms men experience, not women.

The women's health consultation closes at 11:45pm on Sunday

“There are two excuses that I get from medical researchers about why they don’t include women in their research. The most common one is that women are just too complicated and too hormonal,” Caroline told Digital Health News.
“I’ve been told by a researcher ‘well we can’t include females because the menstrual cycle will interfere with the results’, which I just find astounding. That’s basically saying ‘reality is too complicated for me to engage with’, but reality will exist whether you engage with it or not.
www.digitalhealth.net/2020/02/caroline-criado-perez-rewired-2020/

Excellent points FindTheTruth

Deadline 11:45pm on Sunday

Thanks Chatty

"How you can help"

"Everyone has a part to play in abolishing data gaps, Caroline explained, but the biggest changes need to come from those with the most power."

"“I think this has to come from the top, there has to be regulation which has to involve the government,” she said."
www.digitalhealth.net/2020/02/caroline-criado-perez-rewired-2020/

Today I'm feeling the strain of maintaining my health even in a mainstream SM forum that affects to believe that I'm itching to be impolite to people and give out gratuitous offence.

But, still, she persisted and slogged her way through the health consultation.

[quote FindTheTruth]“There are two excuses that I get from medical researchers about why they don’t include women in their research. The most common one is that women are just too complicated and too hormonal,” Caroline told Digital Health News.
“I’ve been told by a researcher ‘well we can’t include females because the menstrual cycle will interfere with the results’, which I just find astounding. That’s basically saying ‘reality is too complicated for me to engage with’, but reality will exist whether you engage with it or not.
www.digitalhealth.net/2020/02/caroline-criado-perez-rewired-2020/[/quote]
This is just shocking if you think about it. Loads of things are complicated. Maths and Physics spring to mind but it doesn't seem to stop researchers in those areas relishing the challenge to go beyond what we know.

It is mind boggling that medical researchers mainly research with men and think of all the undiscovered life-changing discoveries the human race has missed out on. They don't know what they're missing because they don't do it.

Many women struggle to obtain HRT, or spend decades seeking help for endometriosis or pain

deadline tomorrow

www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/06/heart-disease-is-the-leading-cause-of-death-in-women-worldwide-lancet-commission-cvd-stroke/

I'm struggling to get past the "choose 5 things" bit. A Women's health strategy should without question be covering female specific conditions, but there's 6 of those alone, so that doesn't leave room for other important topics like sexual health/contraception and research into health issues that affect women. I ended up cheating and choosing Other, and put "Female specific conditions - period pain, heavy menstrual bleeding, endometriosis, womb & other gynaecological cancers, menopause and pelvic floor health" so I'd have more options to play with.