The BMJ: Women’s health strategy: neighbourhood services are central to reducing health inequalities
In a new article for the BMJ, Health Equality Foundation Founder Baroness Geeta Nargund explores how the government’s renewed Women’s Health Strategy could help address longstanding inequalities in women’s health outcomes across the UK.
The article highlights the importance of ensuring implementation reflects the intersecting impact of gender, socio-economic disadvantage and ethnicity, particularly as the strategy places improving healthy life expectancy in the poorest regions at the centre of delivery.
Baroness Nargund also argues for a greater shift towards genuinely community-based care, including neighbourhood services with on-site diagnostic facilities, specialist clinical support and more joined-up referral pathways to improve access to earlier diagnosis and treatment.
Across the piece, she argues that the strategy presents a significant opportunity to redesign women’s healthcare around prevention, earlier intervention and more equitable access to care, while ensuring delivery remains focused on the communities most affected by poor health outcomes.