Welcome to Her Health News, where health innovation meets equity for women. Our coverage centers on the nexus of women’s health care, health equity, and innovations that create a better health care system for women.
Kiersten Marek, MSW MBA, launches Her Health News to better understand and serve women in our health care system.
Her Health News is a place where women and women’s health care professionals, as well as the general public, can learn about practical news that is changing the women’s health scene. The site covers breakthroughs in research, treatment innovations, and policy shifts that impact women’s health across the lifespan. By combining expert insight with accessible reporting, Her Health News aims to empower readers to make informed choices and advocate for better care for themselves and their communities.
At Her Health News, we will be focusing on the “hard news” of women’s health care — innovative treatment models that orient their care to women, business models that work to serve women of color or other marginalized populations of women, startup launches, device approvals, new clinical trials for women’s health, and more. Periodically, we may offer wellness advice, (I am a licensed clinical social worker, after all!) but it will be mostly related to innovations in health care. We also plan to do a light menu of interviews and webinars.
Finally, Her Health News offers business analysis on the ever-changing sector of health care for women. Two action-packed years of graduate school to earn my MBA made me into something of a hard-nosed realist when it comes to business function and sustainability, so this analytic frame for our content aims to shed helpful light on the business side of health care serving women.
In today’s complicated world, it’s more important than ever to increase our understanding of women’s wellness and how it can be enhanced. Without more healthy women advancing into women’s leadership, the planet is not on a path to sustainability. With more women’s leadership, and better women’s health care, we can potentially realign toward enhancing women’s bodies on the cellular level, while also nourishing a world where women leaders guide us toward a more sustainable planet for all.
Women wait 33% longer for emergency care in certain instances. We need to fix that.
You know the feeling: the quick glance at the chart, the half-answered question, the dismissive “it’s probably anxiety.” Too many women have walked out of emergency rooms or doctors’ offices feeling unseen, unheard, and untreated. Studies confirm the experience—women’s pain is still under-evaluated, their symptoms misattributed, and their time undervalued.
Consider taking these steps to improve your experience as a woman seeking care in a doctor’s office or emergency room. (Photo by Cdn Pages on Unsplash)
A 2022 Yale study found that women wait an average of 33% longer than men to receive pain medication in emergency departments. Other research shows that women’s heart-attack symptoms are misdiagnosed more often, and chronic conditions like endometriosis or autoimmune disorders can take years to be properly identified.
If you’ve ever ended up sitting in an ER waiting room for hours or even whole days, you know the problem we’re talking about. It’s one of the biggest signs that our health care system is broken.
But, fortunately, women don’t have to take all of this sitting down (no pun intended!). Often, our power lies in our ability to use our voice, and our ability to access more and better information in today’s connected world. There is also much power in bringing someone with you when you go for medical help. Here are ten practical steps that can help you access the care you deserve.
1. Trust Your Body’s Data
You know your body best. Track your symptoms—time, duration, intensity, and any triggers—using a pad you keep handy, an app on your phone, or even a wearable health tool. Show the data to providers (“I’ve logged chest pain 4 times this week, each lasting 20 minutes”) and help them center their services on your documented experience.
2. Bring a Care Ally
All it takes is one witness to rearrange the power dynamic in any health care encounter. A calm, assertive companion—friend, partner, or family member—can be that witness and can also amplify what you are saying. You can also ask them to take notes, record key points (with permission), and back you up if you’re being interrupted or dismissed.
3. Lead With the Urgent Symptom
Clinicians triage by severity. Begin with your biggest concern: “I’m here because I’ve had extreme and unusual headaches for two days.” It sets the clinical agenda around your main risk rather than letting it be sidelined.
4. Use Assertive, Clear Language
Swap out the softer language we women are socially conditioned to use (“I think my pain is getting worse”) for specific statements:
“I am concerned this could be something serious.”
“I need a diagnostic test to rule this out.”
“I need a more comprehensive work-up to figure out what the root of the problem is.”
Remember: assertive language isn’t rude—it’s protective. You’re steering your own care narrative.
5. Ask for Documentation
If a doctor refuses to order a test that you have good reason to believe is necessary, or if discharge feels premature, request that it be noted in the chart. You can say something like, “Can you please document that I asked for [test/referral/continued treatment] and it was declined?” This creates a record and signals accountability.
6. Name the Bias, Calmly
If you sense your symptoms are being minimized, it might be productive to put it into words. “I was just reading an article about how women experiencing pain wait 33% longer than men for emergency care, and often once they seen, their symptoms are dismissed. Can we make sure that isn’t happening here?” It might make things a bit uncomfortable, but it signals that you are a knowledgeable health care consumer, and you are seeking ways to get past the social dynamics that might be standing in the way of your care.
7. Know When to Escalate
If you’re in an ER, ask for the charge nurse or patient advocate. In clinics, request to speak with the supervising physician or practice manager. These roles exist precisely to resolve care disputes or communication breakdowns.
8. Leverage Digital Second Opinions
Telehealth has opened new doors for rapid re-evaluation. Platforms such as Mayo Clinic’s Expert Opinion, Cleveland Clinic Express Care, or Included Health can provide specialist reviews within days. This kind of second opinion can be particularly valuable for women’s cardiovascular, autoimmune, or pain conditions.
9. Document Everything Post-Visit
After every encounter, write down what was said, any tests ordered, and follow-up dates. Keep images of discharge paperwork and lab results in a digital folder. This helps continuity of care and strengthens your voice if you need to challenge a decision later.
10. Join the Advocacy Wave
Individual action matters, but systemic change comes from collective pressure. Support groups like Patient Safety Movement Foundation, Black Mamas Matter Alliance, and Endometriosis Foundation of America are pushing hospitals and policymakers to fix inequities that impact women most. Getting involved with advocacy groups can help you feel supported in a safe environment, and adds data to the movement for health care equity.
Why This Isn’t Just a “Women’s Problem”
Bias in medicine is a design flaw baked into decades of research that centered male bodies. Women’s symptoms were deemed “atypical,” pain thresholds “subjective,” and emotional tone a diagnostic factor. The result: delayed diagnoses, preventable deaths, and profound mistrust between women and the system meant to heal them.
Innovation alone won’t solve it, but it can help. Artificial-intelligence tools trained on inclusive datasets, virtual second-opinion platforms, and apps that help women log and translate symptoms into clinical language are all reshaping the experience. Yet the foundation must be equitable access to health care professionals who listen and believe, and technology and systems that are accountable to the patient first.
Bottom Line: Don’t Let the ER Turkeys Get You Down
Feeling ignored at the ER isn’t just frustrating—it’s dangerous. But empowerment begins with preparation. Each woman who insists on being heard, backed by clear data and steady confidence, chips away at a culture that still treats female pain as background noise.
Until health care equity is achieved, the best defense is knowledge, support, and self-advocacy. You are not overreacting. You are advocating for your right to live—and that’s the most reasonable thing of all.
U.S. maternal mortality remains high, with Black women at disproportionate risk.
Black women are three times more likely to lose their life to maternal mortality. (Photo by Black Linear Studios on Unsplash)
The United States has one of the most advanced health care systems in the world. Yet, for women giving birth, the U.S. remains one of the most dangerous places on the planet. In 2021, the U.S. maternal mortality rate reached 32.9 deaths per 100,000 live births, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That 32.9% is more than triple the rate in Canada (10.4) and nearly eight times higher than in Sweden (4.0).
For Black women in the U.S., the number is nearly three times higher, at 69.9 deaths per 100,000. The Population Reference Bureau (PRB) calls this disparity “a public health crisis that innovation alone cannot fix—but one that innovation, equity, and accountability together might.”
The Deep Roots of Structural Inequality that Feed Maternal Mortality
Behind the numbers lie many of the usual suspects for creating health care inequality in our country: large gaps in care access, particularly pre-natal and postpartum care (racism, classism, ableism and other forms of discrimination play a role), as well as lack of access to insurance or even transportation. Perhaps worst of all, there is a serious lack of research and data on this problem. So before we can address this problem, we first need to learn more about it.
Most pregnancy-related deaths are considered preventable — about 80% could be stopped if medical help could be reached. Yet, too often, the warnings women share about their symptoms go unheard or unheeded.
Ultimately, this is a listening problem in many respects. The issue is not the absence of technology or care, but an inability to access that care, and to get a response from the medical community in our gap-filled pay-per-piece medical system.
Midwives and Doulas: Innovation Through Tradition
Some of the most effective services for pregnant women are rooted in centuries-old practices of midwifery and doula care. Black-led and Indigenous-led birth organizations across the U.S., such as Mama Glow, Ancient Song Doula Services, and the National Black Midwives Alliance are finding ways to use private-pay doula networks along with Medicaid funding to bring more knowledge, support, and responsiveness into the maternal care system. Some states are also ahead of the game, reimbursing doula care and ensuring that it reaches low-income women.
Tech to the Rescue, Addressing Medical Communication in Better Ways
“Telehealth has changed the conversation,” says Dr. Monica McLemore, a reproductive health researcher. “It doesn’t replace in-person care, but it bridges the gaps—especially for women who might not otherwise make it to an appointment.”
While technology can’t play the role of another human, it can aid in the communication piece. On the provider side, medical records platforms can often help providers stay on track with reaching out to pregnant or post-partum women, and a little more outreach might be part of the solution.
On the client side, platforms like Mae Health, Oula, and Babylon Health are also making it easier for women to use mobile phones and a range of other devices to stay in touch with providers, expanding access to virtual check-ins, remote monitoring, and education that can alert providers to hypertension, depression, or infection before complications turn fatal.
The Business Case for Addressing Maternal Mortality
Startups like Mahmee, a Los Angeles–based company that integrates digital tracking with wellness coaching, are making the case to investors that capital put toward equitable care can pay off. Meanwhile, venture and philanthropic capital are beginning to converge around this issue: the Women’s Health Innovation Coalition, Pivotal Ventures, and Blue Haven Initiative are all increasing investment in maternal health solutions that target inequities in access and quality.
