‘Still a lot of work’ to highlight women’s health issues

A local councillor says while “significant advances” have been made, there is “still a lot of work” to ensure that often debilitating women’s health matters such as endometriosis are given the same level of acknowledgement as other conditions in national care programmes.

Endometriosis affects approximately 10% of women in Ireland and can result in painful periods, intercourse or difficulty in getting pregnant. It was raised as part of a motion tabled by Fianna Fáil’s Áine Smith in April in which she demanded improved services for women’s health.

“This disease is as prevalent as diabetes, yet it is poorly understood. As a result, it is consistently under diagnosed,” she told the meeting. “There is not enough publicly funded research dedicated solely to reproductive health. Even worse still, it can take an average of 10 years to get a diagnosis.”

Cllr Smith also highlighted that the majority of women affected by endometriosis are forced to seek medical attention abroad due to the lack of knowledge and resources nationally, and she believed Ireland should follow the ‘Me Programme’ launched in New Zealand which educates young girls in schools about its signs and symptoms.

Her motion requested Minister for Education Norma Foley to consider including the education of endometriosis in the Social Personal and Health Education (SPHE) curriculum at both Junior and Senior Cycle.

She received support from other councillors, with party colleague Patricia Walsh speaking candidly about her ownpersonal experience living with the condition, for which she was first diagnosed only in her early 30s.

“A lot of people are going under the radar,” said Cllr Walsh.

Responding to the councillor’s concerns, Private Secretary to the Minister for Health noted in a letter to the council that endometriosis has been “recognised” as part of the work being undertaken by the Women’s Health Taskforce.

It has also been included in the Women’s Health Action Plan 2022-2023 as part of a “priority workstream” on improving gynaecological health for women and girls.

The letter states that the HSE’s National Women and Infants Health Programme (NWIHP) has advised that a “key aim” of endometriosis treatment is to relieve symptoms so that the condition does not interfere with day-to-day life for patients.

It adds that the NWIHP is “progressing the development of a National Endometriosis Framework” to identify care pathways for women, with this care spanning primary care to local hospital care to specialist complex care.

The framework was developed in conjunction with endometriosis specialists and gynaecologists. The letter states it has already commenced with two supra-regional complex endometriosis services in the process of being established in Tallaght and Cork, and supported by a network of five regional endometriosis hub services.

Cllr Smith welcomed the letter, as did Cllr Walsh, who said that some women wait years to be seen and diagnosed. “They should be seen sooner.”