Publications

This page records m he reproductive team. This included ones published in medical journals and our summaries for the public. If you want to ask any questions or things don't make sense, feel free to email me at r.l.mawson@sheffield.ac.uk

Ethnic minority women's views about contraception - public engagement report Nov 2022This report presents the first part of our research project, which explores women's experiences from ethnic minority groups. The report was co-written with those who attended the workshop. The discussions have led to our current research project with our community link research workers.

Contraception public engagement workshop

We are proud to share the first output from out current project looking at contraception access and experience.

We wrote the report as a team including some of the women who attended the workshop. Their contribution was very much appreciated.

We also have shared images creayed by our visual scribe team at Nifty Fox.

Click on the report to read it in full.

Understanding access to Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare in the General Practice setting; A focus on inequalityThis report gives an overview of sexual and reproductive health inequalities using the Candidacy Framework to understand access. Sheffield University Ethics Project code148174

Unequal health

Our latest update from Dr Rebecca Mawson.

Looking at the challenges of accessing sexual and reproductive care, this includes a range of different things like contraception, sexual health screening, LGBTQ+ care and much more.

Click the image to see the full report.

Any questions or views you want to share, feel free to contact via r.l.mawson@sheffield.ac.uk

Endometriosis: time to think differently (and together)Endometriosis affects approximately 10% of people assigned female at birth, an estimated 190 million women worldwide.1 At an individual level, endometriosis can be asymptomatic, or can cause a spectrum of chronic pain, fatigue, bowel and bladder symptoms, depression, and other comorbidities, including infertility. A challenge for clinicians, perhaps notably in general practice, is that endometriosis is markedly heterogeneous, with no predictable correlation between symptoms experienced and the extent of endometriosis identified during diagnostic laparoscopy or on imaging. Likewise, endometriosis-associated pain can persist when visibly apparent endometriosis is treated.1 Economically, the annual accumulated cost of endometriosis is estimated to be £12.5 billion in the UK, including treatment, health care, loss of productivity, and absence from work.1 Endometriosis has significant potential adverse impacts on an individual’s quality of life.1 On average, sufferers lose up to 11 hours of work per week due to endometriosis symptoms, a figure similar to chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, Crohn’s disease, and rheumatoid arthritis.1 Many people with endometriosis experience complex journeys to (and through) care. The average delay in diagnosis in the UK between presentation with symptoms and being diagnosed with endometriosis is 8–9 years — and this has not changed over the last decade, despite changes in guidance, awareness-raising campaigns, and a UK All Party Parliamentary Group report.2 These figures are similar worldwide, speaking to the complexity of diagnosis.1 While endometriosis in adolescence used to be considered rare, a majority of those diagnosed with endometriosis recall symptom onset in adolescence, and many remember not being offered timely treatment.1 These challenges in care experiences — and the overarching need to work to improve them — was a central finding and conclusion of the Women’s Health Strategy for England and the Scottish Women’s Health Plan.3,4 …

Endometriosis inequalities

Our editorial calls for changes int he way we diagnose and manage endometriosis in the UK.