A campaign to help close the gender health gap in the UK is to offer free women’s health training to over 10,000 GPs.
The campaign, called Miss Diagnosed, is run by digital healthcare provider Livi following research that found that 57% of women fear they have been misdiagnosed at some point. Almost a quarter of these (22%) believe this was simply due to being female.
The training will be delivered through a series of live and recorded events. The first is a half-day on 7 October held at The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), with 200 in-person places available. The session, covering topics such as endometriosis, menopause and HRT and perimenopausal bleeding patterns, will also be recorded and shared online.
Speakers include GP and deputy medical director for eLearning at RCGP, Dr Toni Hazell, GP and menopause specialist Dr Claire Phipps, and GP with special interest in gynaecology, Dr Julie Oliver.
The sessions will be free and CPD points can be collected for attending.
Dr Bryony Henderson, lead GP at Livi, said: ‘Until about 25 years ago, almost all medical research was carried out on men, which has created a significant gender health gap, and led to worse outcomes for many women.
‘Digital healthcare has a huge role to play in closing the gender health gap, and Livi is committed to providing specialist women’s health training covering themes such as menstruation and menopause, not only to our own GPs, but to thousands more doctors across the UK.’
Earlier this year, the Government unveiled its Women’s Health strategy that said all new doctors would be required to complete mandatory women’s health training from 2024.
The strategy also included a commitment to commission ‘urgent’ research into healthcare professionals’ experiences of listening to women in primary care.
