Women’s health is a crucial category for local pharmacies - in fact, it’s one of the main areas pharmacies nationwide are paying attention to. Staying up to date with the latest advice and treatments on health issues that affect women specifically is a priority, and the range of problems can be varied, from sexual health and contraception to pregnancy and period probems, to thrush, cystistis and menopause symptoms.

However, certain subjects can be considered embarrassing, so putting the patient at ease with open questions and an appropriate level of discretion is important to help women feel comfortable and be more open:

“Women tend to be our main customers and they buy for the whole family, but we often find that they neglect their own health.”

Intimate health is still shrouded with embarrassment, and while 45% of women are concerned about intimate health, 44% would not be able to identify abnormal changes. The reason may be that 76% of women report that they were never specifically taught about intimate health whilst growing up, which means they lack knowledge about common conditions like thrush, cystitis, bacterial vaginosis and vaginal dryness. Even when a customer is aware of a problem, two-thirds will still feel embarrassed discussing it. In fact, one in ten feels more self-conscious dealing with vaginal infections than they would feel about an STI.

Pharmacists are trained to lead positive conversations around intimate health conditions, and to offer the right advice and treatments when they need it. Local pharmacists are capable of offering expert advice and treatment solutions for a range of intimate health conditions.

The local pharmacy is the first place to go when looking for emergency contraception, and pharmacists and their teams are trained to understand the important role they play in consistent provision, ensuring that women who may be uncomfortable discussing EC feel supported and not judged.

Customers' requirements will always be treated with discretion, and because most pharmacies have a consultation room, it’s possible for conversations to happen in private if the patient feels uncomfortable, and pharmacists are happy to ensure customers have privacy to discuss concerns. Your local pharmacist will have been trained to hold sensitive and difficult conversations about women’s health, and will be able to reassure customers that their symptoms and conditions are typically common and can often be treated over the counter.

-

If you need to have a conversation about intimate health, you’ll find friendly faces at your local pharmacy. If you’d like to have a private consultation, give your local pharmacy a call to book an appointment at a time that suits you.