The RCOG is calling for women’s health to be placed at the heart of the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan
Our priorities for the 10 Year Health Plan
Women make up 51% of the population, yet their health has historically been under-prioritised. The 10 Year Health Plan should reflect the Government’s promise that “Never again will women’s health be neglected. Labour will prioritise women’s health as we reform the NHS”.
The plan must clearly set out how its three main shifts – ‘Moving care from hospital to community’, ‘Sickness to prevention’ and ‘Analogue to digital’ – will improve healthcare outcomes for women and strengthen women’s access to the healthcare services they need throughout their life course.
To make meaningful change, we’re calling for focused action in the following areas:
Prioritisation of women’s health
The Government must clearly set out how the 10 Year Health Plan will work alongside, and support the implementation of, the Women’s Health Strategy, building on current priorities to improve women’s health throughout the life course. It must also make visible and strong connections with relevant UK Government departments, supporting the NHS and sustainably reducing health inequalities by making long-term improvements to the wider factors shaping women’s health.
Workforce and estates
Having an adequately staffed workforce underpins and enables healthcare professionals to provide the highest-quality care for women, patients, and families. The 10 Year Health Plan must create a health service that enables staff to have adequate time for training, particularly in the Government’s shift from ‘analogue to digital’ to ensure that they can make greater use of technology.
The ultimate success of this digital shift rests on ensuring that implementation is underpinned by NHS digital systems and estates which are fit for purpose to support the women’s health workforce in obstetrics and gynaecology and women’s health hubs. Investment is also needed to ensure that estates are modernised and digital systems and equipment are upgraded.
Women’s health hubs
The Government must continue central support for the women’s health hub model and commit to recurrent funding and support to ensure every ICB can deliver sustainable, accessible and joined-up services across a woman’s life course. This will support Government ambitions to deliver more care in communities, prevent ill health, and support economic growth.
Gynaecology waiting lists
As the only women-only specialty, gynaecology waiting lists have consistently outstripped growth compared to other specialties since at least 2018. The Government is rightly focusing on reducing waiting lists, and the 10 Year Health Plan must set out how the Government plans to strengthen women’s health services in its efforts to move care from hospital to community, ensuring that gynaecology is given the priority it needs.
Maternity care
The 10 Year Health Plan is an opportunity for the Government to significantly improve maternity care by implementing fully-funded policies and programmes to ensure all women receive high-quality, personalised and safe maternity care, which supports their physical and mental health during and after pregnancy.
There must also be a clear direction as to how the plan will support other commitments such as the Three year Delivery Plan for maternity and neonatal services, the Long Term Workforce Plan, and the forthcoming target to end the maternal mortality gap for Black and Asian women.
Prevention
The 10 Year Health Plan must include a focus on improving public health, and a vision for how the health system can be strengthened to support reproductive choice. This is a crucial part of addressing the health inequalities that women face across their life course, as well as achieving the shift from sickness to prevention and the ambitions of the Health Mission Board.