Celebrating 20 years: Advancing women’s health in Scotland
- Written by: Professor Anna Glasier — Scottish Government — Women's Health Champion
- Published: 26th August 2026
Professor Anna Glasier celebrates 20 years of the ALLIANCE and it's vital role in shaping the Women's Health Plan for Scotland.
I am delighted to be given this opportunity to celebrate 20 years of the Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland.
The Women’s Health Plan Team of the Scottish Government and I have worked closely with the ALLIANCE for a number of years both in developing the Women’s Health Plan for Scotland, first published in August 2021, and in implementing the actions set out within the plan – all designed to improve the health of women and girls in Scotland. More recently, we were delighted to work with the ALLIANCE on the development of Phase Two, which was published in January of this year.
We are particularly grateful to the ALLIANCE for hosting our Women’s Health Lived-Experience Group which has been influential in determining much of what we do, and who were key to shaping Phase Two of the Plan. This is a valuable group with whom we discussed a number of topics, including our Phase Two priority programmes such as eliminating cervical cancer, transforming gynaecology services and our recent focus on optimising future health and improving brain health.
In celebrating 20 years of the ALLIANCE the focus is on highlighting the work of External Affairs and Outreach. In February of 2026, facilitated by Irene Oldfather of the ALLIANCE, I met with a delegation from the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) to talk to them about Scotland’s Womens Health Plan. I briefly spoke about why we need a Women’s Health Plan – simply put, a male-centred evidence base for healthcare provision often results in misdiagnoses and treatment delays for women. I also presented a description of our priority areas and discussed the challenges that we face with regards to the effects of poverty on health. We agreed that while women’s health is gaining attention across Europe few countries have a specific focus on the subject and that those initiatives that do exist are frequently centred narrowly around reproductive care. The delegation agreed that many European countries could perhaps learn from Scotland’s example.
As a result of the meeting with the EESC, in November this year I will be speaking at the third annual Future of Health Europe summit in a panel discussion on how to embed women’s health into mainstream medicine, rather than treat it as a niche subject. This is a meeting for policymakers, public-health experts, clinicians, patient groups, scientists, pharmaceutical executives, technology developers and investors to share strategies for building resilient, future-proofed health systems.
I am sure that the work that we do with the ALLIANCE will help to improve healthcare for women and girls in Scotland and I wish them the best for another 20 years.
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