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Livi offers free women’s health training to UK GPs to help close the gender health gap

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Livi is offering free women’s health training to more than 10,000 GPs in a series of live and recorded UK events. Livi’s recent research reveals how medical data bias is failing women, with 57% fearing they have been misdiagnosed at some point in their health journey. The research found 28% of women don’t believe that doctors are properly trained in all aspects of women’s health.

Livi will offer free women’s health training to more than 10,000 GPs through a series of live and recorded events as part of its Miss Diagnosed campaign to close the gender health gap.

The first half-day event will be held at The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) on October 7, with 200 in-person places available, and will be recorded and shared online.

The training is free of charge, and GPs can collect CPD points for attending. The session will be introduced by Bryony Henderson, Lead GP at Livi, and expert speakers will include:

  • Dr Toni Hazell - NHS GP and deputy medical director for eLearning at the Royal College of GPs, speaking on endometriosis
  • Dr Claire Phipps - GP and menopause specialist, speaking on menopause and HRT
  • Dr Julie Oliver - GP with a special interest in gynaecology, speaking on perimenopausal bleeding patterns

In the first phase of Miss Diagnosed, research carried out by Livi found more than half of women (57%) fear they have been misdiagnosed at some point, almost a quarter of whom believe this is simply due to being female (22%).

And more than quarter of women (28%) don’t believe that doctors are properly trained in all aspects of women’s health.

In response to these findings, Livi pledged to offer free training not only to its own GPs, but to more than 10,000 doctors across the country in a series of live and recorded training events.

Dr Bryony Henderson, Lead GP at Livi, said: “Until about 25 years ago, almost all medical research was carried out on men, which has created a significant gender health gap, and led to worse outcomes for many women. Digital healthcare has a huge role to play in closing the gender health gap, and Livi is committed to providing specialist women’s health training covering themes such as menstruation and menopause, not only to our own GPs, but to thousands more doctors across the UK.”

Livi has already delivered menopause education sessions to UK clinicians, to increase knowledge and confidence in helping women experiencing the menopause, and to address a key priority area of the Women’s Health Strategy for England. The training increased GPs self-assessed knowledge of treatment options for menopause-related symptoms from an average 4.6 out of 10 to 8 out of 10.

As part of the Miss Diagnosed campaign in July, Livi partnered with best-selling author and podcaster, Emma Gannon, to write a patient-focused book titled: “Miss Diagnosed: the health handbook every woman (and man) should read.” The book looks at how symptoms differ between men and women, outlines critical information on the most commonly misdiagnosed women’s health issues and shares advice on how to speak to your doctor.

The book is available free to download on Livi’s new women’s health hub, which draws together medically reviewed health content to help patients understand common conditions and take control of their health.

GPs can sign up for the free women’s health training here