Women’s equality in the UK – A health check
Women’s equality in the UK – A health check
Women’s equality in the UK – A health check
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12.1<br />
12.2<br />
Article 12 <strong>–</strong> <strong>Women’s</strong> <strong>health</strong><br />
There are differences between men and women <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>cidence and prevalence of most <strong>health</strong><br />
conditions. Sometimes <strong>the</strong>re are clear biological reasons for <strong>the</strong>se differences <strong>–</strong> but often <strong>the</strong>re<br />
are not. Gender is <strong>the</strong> most significant factor <strong>in</strong>teract<strong>in</strong>g with economic status to compound<br />
<strong>health</strong> <strong>in</strong>equalities. 1 Women and girls have greater <strong>health</strong> and social care needs than men across<br />
<strong>the</strong>ir lives 2 and face significant barriers to both good mental and physical <strong>health</strong>. 3 Women and<br />
girls’ lives are shaped by physiological factors and social experiences that negatively impact<br />
on <strong>the</strong>ir physical and mental <strong>health</strong>, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g poverty and economic disadvantage, women’s<br />
reproductive and car<strong>in</strong>g roles, experienc<strong>in</strong>g violence and abuse (See Appendix: 21) and age.<br />
Whilst women live longer than men, <strong>the</strong>y spend more years <strong>in</strong> poor <strong>health</strong> and with a disability. 4<br />
This has a detrimental impact on <strong>the</strong>m as <strong>in</strong>dividuals but women’s position <strong>in</strong> society as ma<strong>in</strong><br />
care givers means <strong>the</strong>ir poor <strong>health</strong> will also have a detrimental impact on <strong>the</strong> lives of <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
families and <strong>the</strong>ir ability to function <strong>in</strong> wider society, <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir community and <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> labour<br />
market. 5 Accord<strong>in</strong>g to research, 6 young women leave school half as active as young men, while<br />
over 80% of women are not active enough to stay <strong>health</strong>y. 7 (See Appendix: 25) Women and<br />
girls across <strong>the</strong> <strong>UK</strong> face poorer <strong>health</strong> because of all <strong>the</strong>se factors. An <strong>in</strong>crease <strong>in</strong> women’s<br />
unemployment and poverty, (See Articles 11 and 13) comb<strong>in</strong>ed with current <strong>health</strong> reforms <strong>in</strong><br />
<strong>the</strong> <strong>UK</strong>, could exacerbate exist<strong>in</strong>g <strong>health</strong> <strong>in</strong><strong>equality</strong> between men and women. 8<br />
Recommendations:<br />
• The <strong>UK</strong> Government should ensure that <strong>health</strong> professionals and commissioners<br />
receive education on CEDAW and o<strong>the</strong>r relevant <strong>in</strong>ternational human rights<br />
obligations<br />
• Greater public <strong>in</strong>vestment must be directed towards prevention to tackle <strong>the</strong> root<br />
causes of women’s poor mental and physical <strong>health</strong> and measures to improve gaps<br />
<strong>in</strong> <strong>health</strong> services<br />
• Effectively tackl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> <strong>health</strong> issues women and girls face must take <strong>in</strong>to account<br />
<strong>the</strong> diverse experiences of women’s lives, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g poverty, sexual violence<br />
and abuse and reproduction, and understand how <strong>the</strong>se experiences impact on<br />
women’s <strong>health</strong> and wellbe<strong>in</strong>g. This must <strong>in</strong>clude a cross-government approach<br />
and gendered analysis to address <strong>the</strong> issues that impact on women across <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
lives<br />
Meet<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> Equality Duty<br />
In 2008 <strong>the</strong> CEDAW Committee recommended that <strong>the</strong> <strong>UK</strong> Government monitor <strong>the</strong> delivery of<br />
<strong>health</strong> services <strong>in</strong> order that it may respond <strong>in</strong> a gender-sensitive manner to all <strong>health</strong> concerns<br />
1. Department of Health (2008) The Gender and Access to Health Services Study: F<strong>in</strong>al Report http://www.sfh-tr.nhs.uk/attachments/<br />
article/41/The%20gender%20and%20access%20to%20<strong>health</strong>%20services%20study.pdf<br />
2. As a result of longer life expectancy and longer durations of poor <strong>health</strong> see Office for National Statistics (2010) ‘Health Statistics<br />
Quarterly’ 45 Spr<strong>in</strong>g 2010 http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/hsq/<strong>health</strong>-statistics-quarterly/no--45--spr<strong>in</strong>g-2010/<strong>in</strong>dex.html<br />
3. <strong>Women’s</strong> Health and Equality Consortium (2011) Why women’s <strong>health</strong>? WHEC: London http://www.whec.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/<br />
uploads/downloads/2011/11/WhyWomensHealth11.pdf<br />
4. Office for National Statistics (2008) Focus on Gender, September 2008. ONS: London http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/social-trends-rd/<br />
focus-on-gender/september-2008/<strong>in</strong>dex.html<br />
5. <strong>Women’s</strong> Health and Equality Consortium (2011) Why women’s <strong>health</strong>? WHEC: London http://www.whec.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/<br />
uploads/downloads/2011/11/WhyWomensHealth11.pdf<br />
6. <strong>Women’s</strong> Sport and Fitness Foundation (2012) Chang<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> Game for Girls http://www.wsff.org.uk/resources/girls-and-education/<br />
chang<strong>in</strong>g-<strong>the</strong>-game-for-girls<br />
7. <strong>Women’s</strong> Sport and Fitness Foundation (2012) It’s Time: Future forecasts for women’s participation <strong>in</strong> sport and exercise http://www.wsff.<br />
org.uk/system/1/assets/files/000/000/249/249/1199520df/orig<strong>in</strong>al/itstime_f<strong>in</strong>al.pdf<br />
8. <strong>Women’s</strong> Resource Centre (2012) Factsheet: Women and <strong>the</strong> cuts 2012 WRC: London http://<strong>the</strong>womensresourcecentre.org.uk/wpcontent/uploads/women-and-<strong>the</strong>-cuts.pdf<br />
110 <strong>Women’s</strong> <strong>equality</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>UK</strong>: CEDAW shadow report 2013