The “pivotal” role of the Women’s Health Champion in driving progress has been highlighted in the government's final assessment of Scotland’s first women’s health plan.

Scotland’s women’s health plan, the first of its kind in the UK, was launched in August 2021 with a three-year timeframe.

It aimed to tackle health inequalities faced by women by raising awareness of women’s health challenges and improving access to health care, for sex-specific conditions and in women’s general health.

A final report on progress shows that, since then, each mainland NHS board in Scotland has established both a women’s health lead and a specialist menopause service.

Another key highlight is the launch of a women’s health platform on the NHS Inform website, providing information to the public on a wide range of female-specific conditions like menstruation, endometriosis and menopause.

Scotland’s first Women’s Health Champion, Professor Anna Glasier, has also confirmed she will continue in her role until at least May 2026.

Public and women’s health minister Jenni Minto says in her foreword to the report that Professor Glasier has been “pivotal” in driving forward "groundbreaking work" and providing support – and challenge – since her January 2023 appointment.

Professor Glasier, who has had a long and distinguished career in women’s reproductive health, will also chair the newly convened Abortion Law Review and Eliminating Cervical Cancer working groups.

Ms Minto says the “solid foundation” of progress in women’s health over the last three years is a “testament to the hard work and commitment of colleagues across Scotland” who have been working in an incredibly challenging environment.

However, she also acknowledged that budget pressures mean it is more important than ever that the health of women and girls remain a focus:

“Evidence is clear that women are particularly disadvantaged during times of financial difficulty and so I am determined that our focus on the health of women and girls continues.”

 

What’s next for women’s health in Scotland?

Despite progress in some areas, a recent paper published in the Lancet found that women’s health as a whole across the UK is in decline.

The Scottish government says the next phase of the women’s health plan will focus more broadly on issues that impact women and girls throughout their lives.

Professor Glasier says in her introduction to the report that the next phase of the plan should aim to “make the health of women central to every area of healthcare so that in the future we have no need for a plan specifically focusing on women and girls”.

Women’s health minister Ms Minto recently confirmed work to develop a successor plan will begin from September, in consultation with academics, clinical experts and a lived experience stakeholder group.

In the meantime, the government says work will continue to improve women’s health by driving forward the longer term aims of the current iteration of the plan.

Focuses will include exploring ways Scottish services might be able to offer abortions up to the legal limit of 24 weeks and strengthening the evidence base on the health of women in Scotland.

A review of the data landscape on what information is gathered on women’s health, published alongside the final report on the women’s health plan, reveals large data gaps in reproductive health and female-specific health conditions, including  in endometriosis, menopause, and contraception.

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