AUTHOR: Jessica Freedman BA
Reproductive Health Explained
The World Health Organisation defines reproductive health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters relating to the reproductive system and to its functions and processes” (WHO). It means having control of your health, access to education and medical care across all reproductive life stages – from menstruation through to menopause.
Common reproductive health conditions you need to be aware of include:
- Infertility and fertility issues (impacting 1 in 7 couples in the UK)
- Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), Premenstrual symptoms (PMS) and premenstrual exacerbation (PME)
- Fibroids (impacting 1 in 3), polycystic ovaries (PCO) (impacting 1 in 5) and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and endometriosis (both impacting 1 in 10 women) Thyroid dysfunction (impacting 12% of the population)
- Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI), early menopause (impacting 1 in 20 women) and the menopause (impacting nearly all women!)
- Gynaecological cancers, including cervical, ovarian, uterine, vaginal, and vulvar
The Gender Health Gap
1 in 3 women have a severe reproductive health issue, yet under half seek help
– Public Health England
Many women in the UK struggle to get a diagnosis for a reproductive health issue – largely due to symptom dismissal and pain normalisation of “women’s problems”. Research has found a gender health gap in the UK where many women receive poorer healthcare than men (UK Parliament). Shockingly, 70% of women with PCOS don’t yet have a diagnosis and the average time to diagnosis for endometriosis is 7 years on the NHS (Endometriosis UK).
As employers look to bridge gaps in NHS and private medical insurance provisions, there is an industry-wide shift toward more inclusive and bespoke mental and physical wellbeing benefits. Reproductive health benefits are becoming central to that package – a ‘must have’ not a ‘nice to have’.
Introduction to Reproductive Health Benefits
“Reproductive health benefits” is an umbrella term that encompasses the support employers’ provide to their employees across their reproductive life stages – fertility, family-forming and menopause. Examples of reproductive health benefits include:
- Education and awareness such as educational workshops, lunch & learns, eLearnings and pledges
- Inclusive policies such as fertility treatment, miscarriage, reproductive health conditions leave and menopause policies
- Health assessments and initial consultations such as hormonal health check-ups, infertility diagnosis, recognising menopause signs and specialist appointments
- Counselling, nutritional and lifestyle coaching
- Medication and either full or partial coverage of treatment
“Mental health used to be a hushed conversation, but in the last 5-10 years we have had a wave of re-education and now people feel comfortable talking about their mental health. We are seeing the same thing happen with reproductive health, which has a huge impact on mental and physical health. Many companies have recently announced a more inclusive fertility or menopause policy- and this is just the beginning. ” – Deirdre O’Neill, CCO of Hertility Health
Hertility Benefits for Your Workforce
Hertility Health is shaping the future of reproductive health by giving women the ability to understand and manage their hormone health from menstruation to menopause. We believe in a proactive approach to reproductive health – by detecting issues early, we can prevent issues later down the line.
We partner with leading companies to deliver best-in-class reproductive health benefits and improve access to reproductive healthcare and education. We believe in personalised plans – for you and your employees – and offer a range of corporate plans and coverage options to suit your needs, from educational workshops, to female health assessments and consultations with in-house experts.
For early adopters that have existing fertility treatment benefits for employees, we help you protect that budget – our proactive hormone tests are a fraction of the clinic price and by identifying issues early we can prevent costly treatment. Where treatment is required, our blood tests are accepted by partner clinics and reduce time to treatment.
We provide DE&I impact reports, so you can see the tangible impact on your workforce and your bottom line.
Get in touch today. To learn more about Hertility Benefits For Employers, reach out to [email protected], or visit our website.