By Alliance member and policy advisor Kate May
I was first exposed to chronic conditions and women’s health as a public health issue in the same way many young women are – by living it.
For me, this started with pelvic and back pain and grew into a decade-long experience of navigating uncertain diagnoses, finding the right health care and social support, and dealing with different cases of dismissal and stigma in health care and the community.
At some point in my journey, it became clear that my experience was not unique to me. It was not a personal story; it was a public health story – reflective of overarching trends that make up the bigger picture of what is happening in the space of chronic conditions and women’s health.
The Gendered Experience of Chronic Conditions: Insights, Challenges and Opportunities is the latest position paper by the Australian Women’s Health Alliance.
I proudly supported this work through my professional lens as a health promotion and policy practitioner, and by leaning into my knowledge, experiences and networks as a lived-experience advocate.
The paper outlines the gendered experience of chronic conditions, the policy context in Australia, and makes recommendations for positive change. It also includes a discussion of the role of governments, health services, educators, researchers, and civil society.
Some of the key points include:
- women are at greater risk of ill health than men at all stages of life
- we face a gap in research, knowledge and services to support women with chronic conditions
- social determinants such as access to social support, gendered norms, and violence against women are important to address
- we can improve outcomes by embedding a gendered framework in all health policy, research, health care and beyond.
It’s been an exciting year for women’s health, with growing attention on sex and gendered inequities in health and a spotlight on women’s experiences of pain through initiatives including the #EndGenderBias survey, the Inquiry into Women’s Pain and the launch of the Centre for Sex and Gender Equity in Health and Medicine.
While there are some concerning trends emerging, there’s also strong momentum to make positive systematic changes, improve health, and empower the lives of women who face these complex long-term illnesses.
Several ways to make these changes are outlined in the Alliance’s position paper. The full version is available to view, download and share:
Kate May is a Health Promotion and Communications Consultant based in Melbourne.
She works with public, private and not-for-profit organisations to support health promotion, research, communications and engagement projects.
She is also a strong advocate for women’s health, using her understanding of public health and lived experience of chronic illness to drive change.
