In honour of International Women’s Day 2025, our Trauma Ambassador Fi has shared her thoughts about the inequalities in women’s health care.
Accelerating Action: Women’s Healthcare Needs in Essex
This International Women’s Day 2025, we embrace the global call to Accelerate Action – a theme set by the United Nations to highlight that progress for women must move faster.
Women’s healthcare in Essex is at a turning point. We have momentum, but we must spearhead further change to ensure equitable, accessible, and responsive services for every woman.
By working together – as individuals, communities, and institutions – we can build a healthcare system that is not just reactive, but proactively meets the needs of women at every stage of life.
What Needs to Change?
Women in Essex have identified four key healthcare priorities that require urgent attention:
- Menstrual Health and Associated Conditions – many women struggle with endometriosis, adenomyosis, and PCOS, yet face delayed diagnoses and inadequate treatment.
- Menopause Management – women navigating perimenopause and menopause often find limited support, misinformation, and stigma in healthcare and workplaces.
- Access to Gynaecological Services – long waiting lists prevent women from receiving timely care of conditions that can affect fertility, pain management, mental health and overall well-being.
- Healthcare Support for Survivors & Victims of Domestic Abuse – violence against women is a public health crisis, yet healthcare services are not equipped to support survivors effectively.
While these challenges remain, we are not standing still. In Essex, organisations, advocates and communities are driving real progress – but we must accelerate action to ensure no woman is left behind.
How Do We Accelerate Action?
The United Nations outlines key areas for action, and Essex can lead the way in transforming women’s healthcare through bold initiative and collective momentum.
- Promote Equity in Healthcare
Healthcare must work for all women, not just some. This means:
✅Expanding women’s health hubs that offer specialist support for menstrual conditions, menopause and gynaecological care
✅ Ensuring trauma-informed training for healthcare professionals to better support survivors of domestic abuse
✅Improving education so women feel empowered to advocate for their own health
What can YOU do to help?
Encourage women to seek second opinions, push for referrals, and demand better care.
- Promote Equity in Healthcare
Too many women’s health conditions are underfunded and under-researched. To accelerate action we need:
✅ More funding for endometriosis, adenomyosis, and menopause research
✅ Access to the latest medical advancements, such as improved HRT options and less invasive gynaecological treatments.
✅ Better integration of mental health support into women’s healthcare pathways
What can YOU do to help?
Support research organisation and advocate for funding women’s health.
- Combat Gender-Based Violence Through Healthcare Support
Healthcare providers play a crucial role in recognising and supporting survivors of domestic abuse.
✅ Train GPs and hospital staff to recognise signs of abuse and offer pathways to support
✅ Increase funding for mental health services tailored to trauma recovery
✅ Ensure safe spaces exist within hospitals and clinics for women to seek help without fear
What can YOU do to help?
Learn about domestic abuse support services in Essex and share them within your community.
How Can Everyone Play Their Part?
This is not just a job for policymakers – everyone has a role in accelerating change.
✅ Individuals: Speak Up. Whether it’s sharing information, advocating for your own healthcare, or supporting a friend, every conversation matters.
✅ Employers: Implement health strategy in to your workplace making sure policies exist to support the women in your organisation.
✅ Healthcare Professionals: push for specialist training in women’s health, particularly in recognising conditions that are commonly dismissed.
✅ Community Leaders: Promote access to support groups, educational workshops, and funding for women’s health initiatives.
✅ Policymakers: Prioritise women’s health funding and ensure that healthcare policies are shaped by women’s lived experiences.
The Future is Ours to Shape
We are not powerless, and we are not waiting – we are building a better future for women’s healthcare in Essex now.
Through momentum, motivation and collective action, we can ensure every women receives the care she deserves.
This International Women’s Day, let’s make a commitment:
- To advocate for better care
- To challenge outdated policies
- To support women’s health initiatives
- To accelerate action – together
The future of women’s health is in our hands – let’s make it brighter, stronger, and more equitable than ever before.
Healthwatch Essex Trauma Ambassador Group want to know what the inequalities are that women are facing in our health, care and wellbeing services. Drop us a line at [email protected] or call 0300 500 1895 and have your voice heard. If you are interested in finding out more about the Trauma Ambassador Group, please contact [email protected].