Charities’ dismay as Nicola Sturgeon misses deadline to appoint women’s health tsar

Leading health charities have voiced deepening concern at the failure to appoint the Women’s Health Champion promised by the Scottish Government.

They spoke out after the failure to recruit an ambassador working to close gaping gender inequalities in health care despite Nicola Sturgeon promising the post would be filled by the end of the summer.

The role was announced as a one of the priorities when, amid some fanfare, the Scottish Government launched a Women’s Health Plan a year ago but we later revealed the champion might not be appointed for another three years.

That prompted 17 leading charities to write an open letter to in May calling for greater urgency and, under mounting pressure for action, the First Minister promised in June to fill the post before autumn.

After England appointed its own women’s health ambassador months after announcing the role, the First Minister assured MSPs an appointment was imminent. She said: “We will appoint a Women’s Health Champion or ambassador this summer.”

Now charities are demanding to know when. Gwenda Burns, chief executive of the Fertility Network, which helps people who are trying to conceive or living without children, said: “It was indicated this appointment would be made during the summer, it is therefore extremely disappointing that we are now entering the autumn and no appointment has been made.

“England appointed a women’s health ambassador in June, professor Lesley Regan. We are calling for the government to urgently appoint a Women’s Health Champion in Scotland.”

Women face a battery of inequalities in healthcare, treatment and research. For example, women are up to 50% more likely than men to get the wrong initial diagnosis for a heart attack and are referred more slowly for tests.

Dr Amy Small, clinical adviser at Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, said: “There is a lot of important work needing to be done to tackle women’s health inequalities in Scotland.

“Women die every year because of a lack of awareness and action on women’s heart health. One in 10 deaths in women are caused by heart disease, and we need a dedicated role in place to help change that. Now as summer ends, there is still no appointment of a Women’s Health Champion. It’s vital that the Scottish Government appoints a Women’s Health Champion urgently who can help address some of these disparities.”

In Scotland, women have been unable to access a diagnostic test for pre-eclampsia in pregnancy which has been available in England for months.

National Childbirth Trust CEO Angela McConville said: “As we approach the end of the summer and we have been waiting more than a year for the post to be filled, we would like to see this done urgently. Inequalities in the healthcare system have persisted and women in Scotland urgently need someone to champion their health needs and lobby policy-makers to ensure essential services are working and can be improved.

“It was a very welcome announcement by the Scottish Government in August 2021, regarding the appointment of a Women’s Health Champion, over a year later an appointment has yet to be made.

“We urge the Government to appoint a Women’s Health Champion to provide support and raise awareness around all women’s health issues.”

Alzheimer Scotland also expressed dismay, saying: “It is disappointing that Scotland has still not appointed a Women’s Health Champion despite promises that the appointment would be made in the summer.”

Head of the Centre for Cardiovascular Health at Napier University, Edinburgh, professor Lis Neubeck, said: “It seems to be a logical step to appoint one without delay.”

Margaret Davis, 60, from Lanark, suffered spontaneous coronary artery dissection on holiday in the Lake District and says she was lucky to be referred to a specialist in Leicester.

She is a patient in the Women’s Health Plan’s Women’s Heart Health sub-group. Davis said: “We need the urgent appointment of a Women’s Health Champion in Scotland – someone to keep the focus on women’s health. Cardiac rehab classes are often run in afternoons when women collect children from school or have other caring duties.”

Sturgeon made her promise in response to a question from Scottish Labour Women’s Health spokesperson Carol Mochan. Last week Mochan criticised the failure to honour it, saying: “The SNP are failing women once again with this broken promise.

“Nicola Sturgeon said an appointment would be made this summer. But this week when the Scottish Parliament returns – it appears it is just a another a broken promise.”

The Scottish Government said: “We are currently considering a number of candidates to take on the role of the Women’s Health Champion and expect to make an announcement about the appointment soon.”