Women spend 25 per cent more time in poor health than men; yet women’s heath is under funded, under represented and under estimated- the founder/CEO, Healthtracka, Ifeoluwa Dare-Johnson lamented.
While both men and women contract various conditions, some health issues affect women differently and more commonly, as they bear exclusive health concerns, such as sexual and reproductive health, fibriods, endometriosis, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) and menopause, among others.
Dare-Johnson, at the Banking on Women’s Health Conference, organised by Healthtracka, in Lagos, said, most of these conditions are under-diagnosed with women suffering in silence, and not much have been done to find medical solutions to tackle them.
Explaining further, the CEO said, “From the ages of 10, young girls have to deal with menstrual-related challenges. When they progress to teenagers, they have to deal with their sexual health which includes contraception, and in their 20s – early screening for cervical cancer, fibriods, endometriosis, PCOS etc. When they are in their 30s, they start thinking maternal health, childbirth, breast cancer, ovarian cancer and if not married, they will start thinking about freezing their eggs and when they get to their 40s and 50s, they start preparing for menopause, also other chronic diseases.
“These stages can have a great impact on their mental health, as research has shown that women get more anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts than men, simply because they respond to stress differently.”
The CEO said, with proper research, scientists can find solutions to tackling these conditions, but sadly, women are underrepresented in clinical trials, while stating that black women represent less than two per cent of all clinical trials.
“We have also more male ObGyn than female ObGyn, so when we say women’s health are underfunded, under estimated and under represented, it is not something we just imagined, it is real,” she added.
Dare-Johnson, while quoting a report by the World Economic Forum and McKinsey Health Institute, stated that every $1 invested in women’s health can lead to $3 in economic growth, adding that addressing women’s health gap could add an average of seven days of healthy living for every woman annually, and boost the global economy by at least $1 trillion by 2040.
Speaking on Healthtracka’s contribution to women’s health in Nigeria, Dare-Johnson stated that the healthcare company is at the forefront of driving solutions and innovations around early diagnosis for the past three years, adding that, “We began by looking closely at women’s health. We noticed that a lot of Nigerian women are battling with these life-threatening conditions. Women are spending 25 per cent more times in poor health than men. It seems like there are no tailored made solutions for the different health challenges that they go through in life.
“There is need to change this narrative, hence the reason we launched the HPV self-sample kits for women, to enable them do cervical cancer screening from home. We have also organized this conference because we believe that a good way to change the narrative is for a platform to be created, where women, doctors, policymakers and investors can come together, to brainstorm on best solutions to tackling women’s health challenges. We know that every $1 invested in women’s health, there is $3 return on investment.”
She therefore called on government to facilitate collaborations and formulate policies that will promote women’s health, as they are the backbone of economy growth. “Listen to the issues surrounding women’s health, to boost the Nigerian economy,” she advised.
Meanwhile, Nollywood actress Ini Dima-Okojie, while sharing her fibroids journey at the conference, urged women to speak out about their health conditions. According to her, she found out she had fibroids in 2017, and freaked out, because she didn’t know much about the condition.
After a successful surgery, Dima-Okojie said she decided to share her story via Instagram, to encourage and help other women who are battling with the condition. “I never regretted that I shared my story with the world, as it has impacted the lives of many women with fibroids,” she added.
