The renewed Women’s Health Strategy is an important step towards a more inclusive and responsive healthcare system, with a clear ambition to give women better information and greater control over their health.
However, a significant challenge remains around health literacy and access to timely, relevant information. While awareness of women’s health issues has improved, for certain conditions, many women still struggle to recognise and act on symptoms in practice.
Menopause is a clear example. GenM research shows only 10 percent of women report a positive experience, while 78 percent feel fearful and half feel unprepared. A significant knowledge gap remains, with nearly six in ten women not connecting symptoms such as brain fog, joint pain or disrupted sleep to menopause.
Similar patterns can be seen in other areas of women’s health. Haleon’s Pain Index shows that many women struggle to manage everyday pain, with stigma, misunderstanding and delays in accessing support affecting outcomes.
Taken together, this points to a wider challenge around health literacy and equity. While information alone is not the only factor, ensuring the right information is available in the right place at the right time can play an important role in improving health outcomes for women.
The crucial role of pharmacy
As one of the most accessible healthcare touchpoints, with four in five people in England living within a 20-minute walk of their local pharmacy, pharmacy teams are uniquely positioned to support women in recognising symptoms, navigating options and taking earlier action.
This is particularly important for minor ailments, where timely access to advice and treatment can make a real difference to day-to-day wellbeing. Women are more likely than men to report self-treatable conditions, for example, headaches (49 percent of women compared to 38 percent of men in the past 12 months) or blocked noses (47 percent of women to 38 percent of men in the past 12 months) that can often be managed with pharmacist advice and an appropriate over-the-counter medicine.
For some self-treatable conditions, pharmacy teams can also provide quicker access to care and help reduce pressure on GP appointments. PAGB data shows women frequently seek GP support for issues that could often be managed through self-care or pharmacy, including menopause or heavy menstrual bleeding.
Yet, these GP appointments can be hard to secure: more than half of women experiencing menopause report finding it difficult or very difficult to see their GP for support.
Against this backdrop, the Pharmacy First service is improving access to care for women’s health conditions, such as urinary tract infections, offering assessment and treatment in convenient community settings. This shows the important role that pharmacy can play in being the first port of call for timely access to care and treatment.
Supporting pharmacy teams
At Haleon, we are working to support pharmacy teams in delivering this role more effectively. Through tools such as our Health Partner Portal, we provide accessible, evidence-based resources to support conversations around women’s health, including for pain relief.
We are also working with partners such as GenM to improve menopause visibility and support within retail settings. Through brands such as Centrum and Voltarol, this includes helping to ensure women can more easily identify products and information that meet their needs. Initiatives such as M-Tick accreditation are helping to make this information clearer and easier to navigate.
These efforts aim to support the delivery of more consistent information and strengthen the delivery of care in settings closest to home.
Moments that matter most
Ultimately, the success of the Women’s Health Strategy will depend on how effectively support is delivered in the moments that matter most. With pharmacy teams embedded in communities and accessible to most people across the country, they are well placed to play a central role in improving outcomes for women at scale, with the right tools and information helping to ensure women receive timely, practical support at the point of need.
(Jo Cooper is the general manager of Haleon, UK and Ireland.)
