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This account was shared with by Louise, a patient who recently underwent a hysteroscopy in Liverpool. Having read about many negative experiences, she wanted to share her positive and painless experience, highlighting the need for less variation and better experiences for all women.  I was saddened to read the horrendous experiences of hysteroscopy shared by women on this site and only discovered the accounts shared here after my procedure yesterday. I am 54 and underwent a hysteroscopy including biopsies (polyp) and a Mirena fitting after experiencing irregular perimenopausal bleeding. I have one child who was delivered by emergency C-Section 12 years ago (which was truly horrific and is a whole other topic and hospital). My hysteroscopy procedure took place at Liverpool Women’s Hospital and I can only describe the whole experience as gold standard. I was seen and treated under the 2-week target for referrals. When I arrived the gynaecology outpatient department was calm, relaxing and well-staffed by very caring and attentive nurses. I was offered a Saturday morning appointment that meant no time off work, which was a plus for me. Each stage of admission, observations, pain relief, preparation and the actual procedure was carried out with care and absolutely everything was explained to me in great detail. I was made aware during my referral appointment a few days previously about the possibility and levels of pain to expect and the pain relief options that would be available. I was expecting the worst, although I did feel mentally prepared. Pre-op I was offered ibuprofen and a diclofenac suppository which I took and during the procedure I had a local anaesthetic and plenty of gas and air. The local anaesthetic was akin to how it feels at the dentist, weird but I found it bearable. I was welcomed into the theatre by a very friendly female consultant and three nurses who explained everything and put me totally at ease. My experience of the actual procedure and how it felt was a level up from the initial speculum exam at referral stage and it felt scratchy and pinchy rather than painful, saline was introduced to help with the imaging (which I chose not to watch on the screen but could have if I wanted to). The gas and air helped massively (I took so much it made me burst out laughing and the team were worried I was crying!). It was over very quickly - I would say 15 minutes. The consultant asked me when I was dressing how my pain was on a scale of 0-10 and I answered honestly that it was 0. I experienced no bleeding at all. I was then asked to relax on a recliner in recovery with tea and biscuits and I was monitored for approximately 30 minutes. From arrival at 8.00am to discharge at 10.30am I felt looked after, cared for, respected and treated with the utmost dignity and compassion. I didn't need to stay in recovery long as I felt so well but I feel they wouldn't have discharged me in a hurry if there had been any signs of anything worrying. I was a bit anxious how I would feel after the diclofenac wore off (which I was advised was 16 hours) but I have woken up this morning with no pain, no bleeding and just a sense of how fortunate I have been to be treated at Liverpool Women’s Hospital. It really concerns me to hear of so many awful experiences around the country and just wanted to highlight for balance how well the experience went for me. I am lucky to live in Liverpool, and my heart goes out to those women who have been traumatised. Care shouldn't vary depending on where you are treated. Thank you for reading my story.

The renewed Women’s Health Strategy sets out how the UK Government will improve women’s health and healthcare over next 10 years. The renewed Women’s Health Strategy will apply the 10 Year Health Plan’s new care model to make much faster, more decisive progress focused on four health outcomes: The first commitment - and the golden thread of this strategy - is to make women’s voices and choices central in healthcare. The Government will: Establish the women’s voices partnership in 2027, a new space for organisations representing women to inform national decision making, and - over time - regional planning and delivery. The partnership will have a focus on organisations representing women most excluded from traditional services. Develop and implement PREMs, and where appropriate PROMs, for core women’s health pathways over the next 5 years, starting with gynaecological outpatient procedures. Help reduce variation in how GPs listen to and respond to women, using GP Patient Survey data to launch a quality improvement programme within 2 years to help GPs identify problems. Within 3 years, co-produce with women standards of care for the delivery of gynaecological procedures such as hysteroscopy, ensuring all women give informed consent and are offered a choice of pain relief. Improve access to contraception, including ensuring all women can access emergency contraception for free from a pharmacy and encouraging simpler access to long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) within 2 years. Support the sustainability of abortion services, including changing NHS payments and supporting integrated care boards (ICBs) to implement the NHS abortion commissioning guidance. And we will continue safe access zones outside abortion clinics - all within one year. Work with stakeholders to review the evidence for, and implications of, rolling out a graded model of care for repeated pregnancy loss. Improve care and support between pregnancies for marginalised communities, working together with the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Maternity Disparities Consortium. We will engage marginalised communities to co-develop, co-implement and co-evaluate care and support before and between pregnancies, providing the UK’s first blueprint for such care by 2030. Improve perinatal mental health, parent-infant relationship and infant feeding support in 75 local councils. Backed by over £900 million, through the Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies programme we are taking action to create a more integrated, accessible system of support right in the heart of local neighbourhoods. Expand our world-leading prenatal genomic testing offer to provide vital information to women during pregnancy and to support reproductive decision making Second, we will transform NHS performance in services that matter most to women The Government will: Launch a new programme to improve education for girls about their menstrual health, investing an additional £1 million from this year to support targeted work in schools and community settings. This will support girls’ knowledge about menstrual health and when to seek healthcare. Introduce a menopause question into the routine NHS Health Check this year, raising awareness of symptoms and giving women the confidence to seek timely help. Shift women’s health services into primary care and community settings, including a single point of access for gynaecology referrals and redesigned clinical pathways for heavy periods, menopause and uro-gynaecology within 3 years. Fund this year a specialist centre in each region for group-based approaches to women’s health pathways including contraception, heavy periods, uro-gynaecology, and menopause. Each regional specialist centre will act as a demonstrator and centre of excellence, supporting local areas to design, implement and evaluate group-based pathways. We will roll these out in areas of highest health need or highest health inequality first. Prioritise menstrual problems (caused by issues such as endometriosis, fibroids and adenomyosis) and menopause as 2 of the first 9 pathways to be established in the new virtual hospital, NHS Online, launching in 2027. Support early diagnosis of osteoporosis and improved bone health by funding 20 new dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scanners in priority locations, enabled by £2.6 million investment in the financial year ending 2026. This is on top of the £1.9 million already invested in the financial year ending 2025. This will provide an estimated 60,000 scans per year and improve image quality for patients. Improve safety in maternity services, providing better care and improve women’s experiences around birth through the NHS Maternal Care Bundle and acting on the findings of the independent National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation and the Secretary of State’s National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce. Improve facilities to ensure bereaved parents have appropriate spaces. This year we allocated up to £9 million to over 40 trusts to enhance their bereavement facilities or estates. Third, we will support all women to lead healthy, prosperous lives The Government will: Deliver our aim to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040, including rolling out home testing kits for human papilloma virus (HPV), providing greater convenience and access. We will make HPV vaccination available in local community pharmacies to reach those who missed school vaccinations. Both are available from this year. Expand genomic testing for inherited causes of major diseases within a year, including BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes associated with higher lifetime risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Roll out breast pain and post menopausal bleeding clinics nationally by the end of 2026 and invest in our wider community diagnostic estate as we deliver our new National Cancer Plan for England. Tackle the biggest causes of death and poor health in women by improving our focus on cardiovascular disease risk management and care, publishing a new modern service framework this year. Tackle rising obesity rates - a risk for multiple women’s health problems, including some cancers. We will support women to lead more active lives and improve their diets through campaigns, investment in sports, digital tools and supporting access to healthier food. Support women to drink less alcohol and smoke less - including creating the first smoke-free generation. Improve care for women living with frailty and dementia, publishing a modern service framework for frailty and dementia. Halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) within a decade. As part of the health system’s contribution, we will invest up to £50 million to transform support for victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation across every NHS region in England, as well as rolling out a domestic abuse and sexual violence referral service and additional investment for victims and survivors. Improve support for women sleeping rough through helping councils to design and deliver effective outreach and services alongside NHS services. Support women to enter and remain in work through better treatment and management of MSK conditions. MSK conditions are one of the leading conditions reported by people who are economically inactive (including due to long-term sickness), with women at higher risk than men. Support women affected by menopause in their jobs by introducing new requirements on employers with 250 or more employees to publish an action plan including support for employees experiencing menopause, starting in 2027, subject to secondary legislation. Partner with Vanguard employers as part of the Keep Britain Working Review to test how we can better support good health in work - with a focus on women’s health across the life course. Give carers more power and convenience through the NHS App. When fully rolled out, the new My Carer function in the NHS App will allow people to securely prove they are providing care, book appointments and communicate with their loved one's care team. Fourth, we will create an approach to research and development that works for and empowers women The Government will: Accelerate the deployment and spread of innovations that benefit women’s health, launching a FemTech healthcare challenge within 2 years with a pot of £1.5 million. This will enable systems to work with promising FemTech developers addressing areas of unmet need, with a focus on community service models addressing health inequalities. Launch the NIHR R&D Innovation Catalyst this year to provide wrap around support for high priority innovations, with R&D funding available across all translational phases of research if main milestones are met. We will ensure the R&D Innovation Catalyst considers women’s health innovations throughout its operation, both for reproductive and pregnancy conditions, and by ensuring equity in its approach to innovations for any disease. Ensure women are not left behind in research. From now, NIHR will only fund research that appropriately considers sex-based differences. We will also make it easier for women to participate in clinical trials by integrating the Be Part of Research service on the NHS App - and in time automatically match patients with studies based on their own health data and interests. Support female founders in health and care. Within a year, through the NIHR we will launch a new accelerator for female founders with innovations addressing women’s health priorities. Our new programme will provide funding and support through a programme including mentoring and advice for entrepreneurs, market testing and access, scale-up and commercialisation models.

Lichen sclerosus is a skin condition that causes itchy white patches, most commonly on the genitals. There's no cure, but treatment can help relieve the symptoms. It is though to affect 1 in 100 women. The Lichen Sclerosus Guide was awarded first place in the 'Communicating effectively with patients and families' category of the 2025 Picker Experience Network (PEN) Awards. The guide has been written by people with vulval lichen sclerosus and expert healthcare professionals and researchers from the University of Bristol, University of Nottingham, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, and Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. Since its launch earlier this year, the guide has been viewed by over 25,000 people in more than 50 countries. The Lichen Sclerosus Guide led by Dr Sophie Rees and Dr Caroline Owen combines clinical expertise with lived experience of vulval lichen sclerosus, offering clear, accessible information through written content, videos, animations, and downloadable tools. It contains information about symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and support, and includes videos explaining what happens to the skin in lichen sclerosus, vulval anatomy and self-examination, and how to apply treatment to the vulva. The judging panel praised the guide for its inclusive, evidence-based approach to tackling stigma and improving health literacy. They commented that: “It empowers patients, supports clinicians and bridges gaps in care, making it a model for effective communication and partnership in healthcare.”