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Liverpool City Council recently convened a significant gathering focused on enhancing women’s health and addressing persistent inequalities in the city. The Women’s Health Conference united women with lived experiences, alongside community groups, frontline workers, and system leaders. This event fostered the exchange of evidence and personal narratives, emphasizing collective efforts to improve health outcomes for women throughout Liverpool.
Health disparities for women in Liverpool are notably more severe than the national average. Women here tend to develop illnesses at younger ages and endure a longer duration of poor health. On average, ill health begins about a decade earlier compared to women elsewhere, and they spend roughly 30% of their lives experiencing health challenges. Early death from preventable causes is also more common among women in Liverpool, revealing a wider inequality gap than that observed for men. These outcomes are influenced by entrenched social, economic, and gender-based factors, with many women impacted by poverty, insecure employment, unpaid caregiving duties, and the long-term effects of trauma, all of which cumulatively affect physical and mental health.
Mental health concerns are rising, with depression affecting approximately 17% of women in the city, and nearly 30% of those in midlife. Several preventable risk factors contribute to poor health, including smoking, obesity, alcohol consumption, and drug use. Of particular note, drug-related deaths among women in Liverpool exceed the national average by more than threefold. Specific health issues unique to women, such as endometriosis and menopause-related conditions, are frequently under-recognized or poorly managed. Long wait times for gynaecological services remain a pressing problem, and with women constituting a growing proportion of Liverpool’s older population, conditions like cardiovascular disease, cancer, respiratory illnesses, and falls represent important priorities for promoting healthy aging.
Voices from women across the city have consistently highlighted significant barriers in accessing care. Many report feeling unheard and unsupported when seeking help, exacerbated by fragmented services and prolonged wait times. At the same time, community organizations, peer support networks, and trusted local groups play a critical role in supporting women’s health and wellbeing. The conference provided a forum to share these experiences and evidence while encouraging collaborative reflection among partners. Improving women’s health requires collective action across multiple sectors—including local government, the NHS, voluntary organizations, education, housing, and employment—to create lasting, meaningful change.
Liverpool City Council leaders voiced strong commitments to this initiative. Councillor Liam Robinson stated, “Today is about recognising women as experts in their own lives and partners in shaping our city’s future. This conference is a clear signal that we are listening and that we are committed to making practical, measurable change. Women’s health matters, and it matters now.” Additional council members and health professionals echoed this message, highlighting the need to recognize diverse experiences shaped by ethnicity, disability, age, poverty, and other factors, and emphasizing the importance of working alongside communities to overcome the wide-ranging inequalities affecting women’s health.
By bringing together women, community leaders, and decision-makers, the event signified a shift towards more effective and inclusive approaches. As Professor Matt Ashton noted, “By bringing together lived experience, community leadership and system decision‑makers, we are creating the conditions for real progress. This is about working differently, and better, for women in Liverpool.” NHS leaders also affirmed their commitment, with Dr Fiona Lemmens emphasizing the pursuit of coordinated, timely care and prevention strategies informed by women’s lived realities. The conference marks the beginning of a sustained, city-wide effort to secure commitments that will transform health outcomes for women and improve their everyday lives
Read the full article on Liverpool Express here: Read More
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