Would it surprise you to learn that there is a health care gap for women in British Columbia?
That’s the overall conclusion of a new report, In Her Words: Women’s Experience with the Healthcare System in British Columbia, published by the BC Women’s Health Foundation (BCWHF) and proudly sponsored by Pacific Blue Cross.
Women of all ages and socio-economic conditions across the province offered perspectives on their overall health and experiences in the B.C. health care system. The findings were stark: three in 10 reported challenges accessing the health care they needed last year, and just over half felt that a physician had diminished or overlooked their symptoms. The experiences of Indigenous women were even worse; nearly three-quarters felt their needs were not being met.
There are systemic and societal challenges women face when seeking health care. For instance, women have different physiology than men do, yet a great deal of medical research and practice assumes men’s and women’s bodies are the same. And there is generally not enough focus on women’s reproductive health and how women experience a period, a pregnancy or menopause.
“The report builds on a body of research that has shown how the healthcare system’s one-size-fits-all approach to research and treatment has sidelined the specific and unique health needs of women,” says Genesa Greening, president and CEO of the BC Women’s Health Foundation. “As a result, women’s health concerns often go undiagnosed and untreated.”
Partnering for positive change
“To address a problem, you need to understand the problem, and with the In Her Words report we now know that we can do more,” says Heidi Worthington, senior vice-president at Pacific Blue Cross.
At Pacific Blue Cross, every decision the organization makes is driven by its mission to improve health and wellbeing for British Columbians. It provides health benefits coverage for one in three people, and up to one in three women, across the province. The organization is predominantly women, at about 70%. And this fall it was honoured to begin its work with the First Nations Health Authority, which will support better health outcomes for First Nations women in B.C.
The organization has also entered into a three-year partnership with the BCWHF to help address some of the unique health care needs of women, using its platform as B.C.’s No. 1 health benefits provider to address health care inequities with its clients and members (and within its own four walls) and improve women’s health outcomes.
Virtual care
While Pacific Blue Cross does not deliver primary care services, it can help address the health care access issue noted in the report. To that end, it will be providing members across its plans with the option to access virtual care, starting in 2020. This service will allow them to receive primary care advice anywhere, any time, using their computer or mobile device.
“Virtual care will remove barriers by providing faster access to the support women need and save them the time and costs related to an in-person health care visit,” says John Crawford, president and CEO of Pacific Blue Cross.
Healthy women are your business
In the context of workplace health, the cost of absenteeism has now exceeded $16 billion annually across Canada, with the average full-time employee in British Columbia absent for nine days a year. Thus, as an employer, investing in health can have a profound effect on productivity and engagement as well as the recruitment and retention of top talent over the long term.
Pacific Blue Cross commits to working with plan sponsors to enhance its benefits plans and services for individuals and groups in areas such as access to care, mental health support, and reproductive health and wellbeing. It is also encouraging all organizations to reflect on how they too can effect positive change.
The research commissioned by the BCWHF has helped to shine a bright light on the issues surrounding women’s health care and how we all have a role to play in making changes for the better.
Let’s keep this conversation going. Visit inherwords.ca today to download your free copy of the report. We hope it inspires you to lead the way for change in your own organization.
