'If not you, who? If not now, when?' – driving the research agenda for women’s health

'If not you, who? If not now, when?' These words rang out from the stage at the end of Oxford's Women's Health Forum 2025, delivered as both a challenge and an invitation. The call couldn't be more urgent.

Women – our sisters, mothers, daughters, grandmothers and friends – face a stark reality. They make up 51% of the UK population, account for 47% of the workforce. They undertake the majority of unpaid caring roles, and influence the health behaviours of their families and the rest of society. Yet despite living longer than men women face greater ill health, spending 25% of their lives spent in poor health. For too long, they have been underrepresented in research.

Multiple reports now detail how women’s health has been neglected and lay down a call to arms^[1][2][3]. The question is: who will answer?

A University-wide response

That challenge inspired Oxford’s Women’s Health Forum 2025: Connecting Research, Improving Health, held on 10 July at the Said Business School. This first University-wide event, with five departments from across Medical Sciences^[4], dedicated to advancing knowledge in the field of women’s health at every stage of life brought together an impressive coalition: 26 units across all 5 divisions working to build connections across our diverse clinical and academic community. 

The response was overwhelming. The Nelson Mandela Theatre filled with 350  delegates from across the university, who gathered to network and hear presentations organised around three life stages (Early Life, Adulthood, Mid/Later Life). Distinguished keynotes came from Ranee Thakar (President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists), Bola Owolabi (Director of Health Inequalities, NHS England) Lesley Regan (Women’s Health Ambassador for England) and Anneliese Dodds MP.  

Dame Lesley Regan DBE

Early life: breaking the silence around periods

In the session on Early Life, GP and DPhil student, Sharon Dixon, talked about her research on young people’s journeys to and through primary care for menstrual pain.  The statistics are striking: over 90% of teenagers experience period pain, with impacts on school, sport, and social activities. Despite available treatments, most do not seek healthcare. 

Sharon’s research reveals a troubling pattern: The wide-spread acceptance of menstrual pain – by both people and professionals – helps explain this gap. Her interviews with over 40 young people show that their social worlds and education in schools simply do not prepare them for the lived reality of menstruation.

Adulthood: the hidden impact of 'women's problems'

Much of women’s health remains shrouded by stigma and shame. Abi McNiven presented findings from her extensive interview study with over 70 women with pelvic health conditions, including pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence.

Too often, symptoms like leaking urine and heavy pelvic ache are dismissed as inevitable side-effects of ageing, especially during menopause and beyond. Abi’s research reveals these conditions can be deeply impactful, yet many affected women do not seek help or continue engagement with, medical care.

Exploring another taboo topic, Tori Ford presented her work on vulvovaginal candidiasis, commonly known as thrush, a frequent genital infection that causes itching, burning, and changes in vaginal discharge. While most cases are acute, transient, and easily resolved with over-the-counter medication, some people experience recurring episodes. This condition is affects an estimated 1.2 million women in the UK annually, with numbers expected to rise. Tori’s research reveals recurrent thrush as a complex, multidimensional health issue that offers unique insights into gendered experiences of navigating healthcare. 

Digital health: promise and pitfalls

Two presentations explored the shift from analogue to digital healthcare. I, Lisa Hinton, outlined my research on how remote consultations (telehealth) affect antenatal and postnatal care. I also discussed the collaborative research programme on self-monitoring of blood pressure in pregnancy – an Oxford ‘team science’ effort for over a decade with partnerships across primary care, women’s and reproductive health, cardiology and engineering.

My main message was cautionary: while digital health solutions hold much promise and are being introduced into practice, they also risk creating new inequalities and need to be carefully designed to create equitable care.

DPhil student, Kate Sheridan, is similarly interested in how new technologies are changing healthcare. She described her research in the FemTech space, which explores how digital trackers are reshaping the landscape for people trying to conceive.

Mid/later life: addressing menopause inequalities 

In the final session, Anne-Marie Boylan and Jenny Hirst presented their research on inequalities in menopause care. Jenny shared an analysis of routinely-collected healthcare data that quantify disparities in HRT prescribing in England. The findings are stark: HRT prescribing was higher in white women (22%) compared to other ethnic groups (9% for Caribbean and 4% for Black African women), and significantly lower in socially deprived neighbourhoods compared with affluent areas. 

Anne-Marie reported on her interview study with 52 South Asian women, including six Urdu, Bengali and Punjabi speakers. The interviews revealed cultural norms of silence and the ways  these are maintained, creating barriers to management and help-seeking, while perpetuating stigma around menopause.

Common threads: research that makes a difference

Across all the presentations from the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences (NDPCHS), a common theme emerged: research in women’s health can uncover disparities in care, access and information. More importantly, it can create opportunities to improve care, foster open conversations, increase awareness and reduce stigma.

This mission came to life through Health Experiences Insights (HEXI) – a platform hosted by NDPCHS, which featured eight short films illustrating lived experiences based on research with women about their health journeys. Understanding lived experience is vital to advancing women’s health; behind every dataset, diagnosis or clinical outcome lie the experiences of individuals navigating their health and illness. The films showcased the range of research on women’s health available to view on HEXI, and in the HERG Data Archive.

Building on the momentum

Oxford Women’s Health Forum was more than just a one-day event – it was a vital step towards strengthening collaboration and advancing research in women’s health across the University. The website includes the delegate list to support future collaborations, live recordings, e-posters and the Lived Experience films.

But this is just the beginning. We are committed to building on the momentum from this first event. The challenge issues from that stage – 'If not you, who? If not now, when?' – remains as urgent as ever.

If you’re inspired to contribute future events or interdisciplinary initiatives, we want to hear from you. Contact us at: oxwhforum@wrh.ox.ac.uk