Rebecca Bowman is determined to help remove the stigma around women’s health and hopes to inspire meaningful change for women navigating the health system.
She dreams of a world where women not only feel comfortable talking about their own health, but the general public does as well.
“There are a lot of improvements that are needed in women’s health education,” says Bowman, vice-president of the Calgary Health Foundation. “Calgary needs to improve. Alberta needs to improve. And Canada needs to improve.”
The Calgary Health Foundation partnered with the O’Brien Institute of Public Health, to host the Women’s Health and Wellness Symposium for International Women’s Day on March 7.
The event, held for the second year at the Calgary Central Public Library, focused on matters connected to women’s health.
“At 8:30 a.m., there was a line up all the way to the corner of the street,” Bowman said.
According to the Calgary Health Foundation, three-out-of-four women will experience menopausal symptoms that interfere with their daily lives. The foundation says almost 25 per cent of women are impacted by pelvic floor disorders.
Fifty-four per cent of heart attacks in women go unrecognized.
“This allows women to understand that they are not alone,” Bowman said of the symposium. “It also allows us to educate healthcare professionals on the importance of women’s health and gives the public some understanding that this is really important.”
Vendors at the event included Allegiance Against Violence and Adversity, Fear is Not Love and the Women’s Centre Calgary.
‘Calgary needs to improve, Alberta needs to improve, and Canada needs to improve,’ said Rebecca Bowman, of the Calgary Health Foundation
Participants attended eight moderated sessions on topics such as pelvic floor health, piracy on apps tracking women’s menstrual cycles and ADHD in women.
“There are a lot of job opportunities for women’s health that people don’t know about,” said Angie Taylor, an events specialist with the O’Brien Institute for Public Health. “It’s important to be educating people at health events like this on what opportunities are out there.
“That’s why an event like this is really important to get people interested in the topic.”
