Find out about work taking place in Kent and Medway to improve access to women's health care, treatment and support.

Whether it’s periods, pregnancy or menopause, women and those born female have unique health conditions.

Although the life expectancy for a woman is usually longer than for a man, statistics show women live with ill health for more of their lives than men do.

A national Women’s Health Strategy was launched in 2022 to help to put more support in place. 

Women's Health Strategy

The national Women’s Health Strategy (August 2022) set out an ambition for the next 10 years to:

  • boost health outcomes for all women and girls
  • radically improve the way in which the health and care system engages and listens to all women and girls
  • take a life course approach
  • focus on women’s health policy and services throughout their lives
  • embed hybrid and wrap-around services as best practice
  • boost the representation of women’s voices and experiences in policy-making, and at all levels of the health and care system.

Priorities for women's health 

A £25million investment has been made nationwide to develop women's health hubs.

Four pilot women's health hubs have been set up in Kent and Medway, each of which is working to improve access to care for women's health concerns, focussing on:

  • Contraceptive counselling and provision, including Long Acting Removable Contraceptives (LARC)
  • Pessary fitting and removal
  • Menopause assessment, treatment and support
  • Cervical screening
  • Menstrual problems assessment and treatment
  • Pre-conception care
  • Breast pain assessment and care
  • Sexually transmitted infections screening and treatment.

Each of our pilot hubs, which are not all based in a physical building, is working in a different way to improve training in women’s health services and engage with people to understand what else we can do. You can find out about each of our women's health hub's work on its dedicated web page.

Improving information on women's health and how to access services

Information on women’s health has been improved on the NHS website, and materials are being produced in other formats, including for YouTube and Instagram, as well as non-digital resources.

In Kent and Medway, we work with our NHS, local authority and voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) partners to share and distribute national and local women’s health information resources.

This includes working with each of our four women’s health hubs to develop communications about their work and services and to support them in involving local women in developing services.

We also work with Kent and Medway Cancer Alliance and partners to develop and deliver communications campaigns to support the early diagnosis of cancer. The alliance has developed specific female-focussed campaigns for:

Our Local Maternity and Neo-natal System's website - Bump, Birth and Beyond - is dedicated to sharing information about having a baby and support and services in Kent and Medway. 

Nationally, workplace support is being improved for menopause, and work is under way with employers and women to improve workplace support for other reproductive health issues.

In Kent and Medway, we have introduced a package of support for women working for local councils, the NHS, and its providers about menopause and training is underway for managers to support colleagues. 

Menopause is a life stage included in our draft Kent and Medway Integrated Care System Work and Health Strategy ( Aspiration D: Healthy, Thriving Workforce, Commitment 3: A life stage approach, which considers the impact of different life phases on people at work, for example, menopause and an ageing workforce.)

Share your views

We are gathering people's views on this draft strategy until 20 March 2025. For more information and to share your views, visit Kent and Medway Work and Health Strategy 2025-2030 on Have Your Say In Kent and Medway.

 

Improving access to fertility treatment for female same-sex couples, and beginning work to review the use of non-clinical criteria in IVF access, with a view to improving equality of provision across integrated care systems.

In Kent and Medway, same sex couples are eligible for fertility treatment, with NHS treatment for fertility available in Kent and Medway for all people who meet the eligibility criteria, and where their treating consultant has obtained consent to NHS treatment beforehand using the prior approval process.

The Kent and Medway ART (Assisted Reproductive Technologies) policy sets out the criteria, and also which treatments are available. 

 

Delivering the government response to the Independent Pregnancy Loss Review.


As part of the Three Year Delivery Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, has established a maternal mental health service.

Thrive is a specialist service for women and birthing people who have experienced birth trauma and perinatal loss, whether that is miscarriage, recurrent failed IVF treatment, stillbirth, neonatal death or the removal of a child after their birth.

This service is a specialist service for persistent mental health difficulties following attending talking therapies or counselling services and referral will be by a health professional such as a GP, midwife or health Visitor.

Find out more: KMPT | Thrive - Psychological Support for Birth Trauma and Loss

 

Improving awareness and prevention of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and dementia. 

In Kent and Medway, we are analysing data around women’s health and long-term conditions. Cardiac disease remains the largest single cause of maternal deaths.

Women and people who have long term health conditions and are thinking of becoming pregnant, or who are pregnant, are supported by the Kent and Medway Maternal Medicine Service.

This service supports anyone who has complex clinical needs that need to be considered alongside, or may impact, their pregnancy. Their consultant obstetrician will refer people to the Maternal Medicine Service if they need this support.
 

Implementation of the HRT prescription prepayment certificate (PPC), working with manufacturers on HRT supply, using the UK Menopause Taskforce to champion four-nations collaborative working, and delivery of the NHSE menopause programme.

In Kent and Medway, we are also working across the NHS and local councils to improve menopause support in the workplace.

A network of women’s health champions has been created nationally.

In Kent and Medway, we have appointed Dr Kate Langford, Chief Medical Officer for NHS Kent and Medway, as Women’s Health Champion. 

Continuing towards our goal that research is representative of society, focussing on: 

  • research being more representative of women, as participants, decision makers and researchers
  • research prioritising women's health, care and wellbeing, and addressing the gaps identified through the call for evidence
  • making sure research findings reach an even broader audience to further improve the impact of research in healthcare policy and practice.

In Kent and Medway, we are working with Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex. 

Our women's health hubs 

Thanet Women's Health Hub
Medway Women's Health Hub
Mid-Kent and Coastal Women's Health Hub

Involving people

We asked local people to help us develop our local approach to women’s health.

Women of all ages, and people interested in women’s health, were asked to complete our survey.

Find out more on our women's health page on Have Your Say in Kent and Medway.