Wes Streeting has vowed to stop women being \u201cgaslit\u201d by doctors as he relaunches the women\u2019s health strategy for England.<\/p>\n
Speaking before the publication of the renewed strategy on Wednesday, Streeting said the NHS<\/a> was \u201cfailing women\u201d and set out measures to help them access the healthcare they need.<\/p>\n The government said the strategy would include a new standard of care to ensure women were offered pain relief for invasive procedures, such as fitting a contraceptive coil and hysteroscopies.<\/p>\n Feedback would be directly linked to provider funding via a new trial, giving women more power to affect change if they have a poor experience.<\/p>\n Action would also be taken to ensure women no longer face long waits for diagnoses for conditions such as endometriosis, which can take a decade to diagnose.<\/p>\n A report last month<\/a> by the women and equalities committee found that gynaecological and menstrual health had not been \u201csufficiently prioritised\u201d by the government.<\/p>\n MPs said parts of the 10-year women\u2019s health strategy, launched in 2022<\/a> by the Conservatives, were at risk of being scaled back or discontinued under wider changes to the NHS. These included initiatives that had reduced waiting lists and improved women\u2019s access to healthcare, such as women\u2019s health hubs.<\/p>\n Sarah Owen, the chair of the committee and a Labour<\/a> MP, said: \u201cThis would be a disaster for girls\u2019 and women\u2019s menstrual healthcare, when it is in dire need of more support.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is a national scandal that nearly half a million women are on hospital gynaecology waiting lists when there are effective treatments that could be administered in primary and community care, if only they could access them.\u201d<\/p>\n The report said women faced \u201cmedical misogyny\u201d<\/a> and were left to \u201csuck it up\u201d and suffer in pain for years because of a lack of awareness of women\u2019s health conditions.<\/p>\n Streeting said: \u201c[Women] have for so long been let down by a healthcare system that too often gaslights women, treating their pain as an inconvenience and their symptoms as an overreaction.\u201d<\/p>\n He added: \u201cWhether it\u2019s being passed from one appointment to another for conditions like endometriosis and fibroids, or a lack of proper pain relief during invasive procedures, through to having to navigate symptoms for years before receiving a diagnosis, it\u2019s clear the system is failing women.<\/p>\n \u201cWomen\u2019s voices must be central to delivering effective, respectful and empathetic care. We need to hit medical misogyny where it hurts \u2013 the wallet. Today\u2019s renewed strategy will tackle the issues women face every day and ensure no woman is left fighting to be heard.\u201d<\/p>\n Other plans include a \u00a31m menstrual education programme to ensure girls are better equipped to recognise the difference between healthy and unhealthy periods.<\/p>\n A redesign of clinical pathways for some women\u2019s health issues will aim to speed up diagnosis and treatment, and there will be a review of support for families who experience repeated baby loss.<\/p>\n The government also promised a \u201csingle referral point\u201d to ensure women were directed to the right place the first time they sought help.<\/p>\n Dr Sue Mann, NHS England\u2019s women\u2019s health director, said too many women were dismissed for \u201cserious symptoms\u201d that affected every part of their lives. \u201cThe renewed women\u2019s health strategy will build significantly on the work the NHS has been doing to ensure women are heard and get the specialist care they need,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Women\u2019s health groups cautiously welcomed the renewed strategy. Emma Cox, the chief executive of Endometriosis UK, said decisive action would be vital to improve women\u2019s healthcare in England.<\/p>\n Get in touch<\/p>\n Contact us about this story<\/p>\n The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand accounts from people in the know. If you have something to share on this subject, you can contact us confidentially using the following methods:<\/p>\n Secure Messaging in the Guardian app<\/p>\n The Guardian app has a tool to send tips about stories. Messages are end to end encrypted and concealed within the routine activity that every Guardian mobile app performs. This prevents an observer from knowing that you are communicating with us at all, let alone what is being said.<\/p>\n If you don\u2019t already have the Guardian app, download it (iOS<\/a>\/Android<\/a>) and go to the menu. Select \u2018Secure Messaging\u2019. <\/p>\n SecureDropIf you can safely use the tor network without being observed or monitored you can send messages and documents to the Guardian via our SecureDrop platform.<\/a><\/p>\n