Between March to August 2026, we ran a survey and targeted one-to-one interviews to understand people’s experiences, expectations and views of women’s health outpatient services, to help inform how care can be improved.
The engagement was open to adults who had used outpatient services in the past two years or who may need to use them in future. This aimed to help us better understand:
- people’s current experiences of outpatient services
- expectations and understanding around referrals
- what drives reassurance and confidence in services
- how comfortable people would be with alternative models of care.
Women’s health services cover a wide range of needs, including contraception, menopause care, heavy and painful periods, pelvic pain, bladder and pelvic floor problems, and other gynaecological conditions. Responses reflected experiences across primary care, community services and hospital-based care.
Overall, experiences were mixed. While some people described positive, supportive care, many highlighted challenges including delays in accessing appointments, inconsistent communication and experiences of not feeling listened to, believed or taken seriously.
Read the insight report Return to the Insight Bank