Events fighting for FemHealth & female empowerment

28th April 2025

By Ashley Hayes, Account Executive.

What inequalities still persist for women in the life sciences and healthcare, and how can these be overcome?

Over the past month, we’ve been thinking a lot about female representation in our sector, finding some shocking statistics and insights from the experts! The event that kickstarted this for us was Life Science Integrates’ inaugural FemHealth Integrates 2025 event back in March.

The event was held in the heart of Manchester’s Knowledge Quarter, Bruntwood SciTech’s Circle Square. Across a series of panel sessions, the event brought leaders together to discuss the persisting gender bias, and how we can drive positive change.  

Continuing this momentum, I also had the opportunity to attend Bionow’s event ‘Empowering Women in Biotech‘ at the impressive Waters Corporation building in Wilmslow. This was another fantastic day of talks and panel sessions, with women – including several founders and directors – discussing challenges faced in their careers, and what it takes to tackle these.  

These events emphasised how a great deal of change is needed to make women’s health a priority and improve gender equality. Key challenges discussed include the current gender health gap in the UK, the underrepresentation of women in clinical trials and difficulties in female-founded companies securing investment.

The shocking gender gap in healthcare

A main talking point of Life Science Integrates’ FemHealth event was the large inequalities in healthcare, with women estimated to spend 25% more of their lives in poor health than men. This is likely caused by a combination of several factors, including funding gaps, and deep-rooted systemic biases across drug development, clinical research, and healthcare delivery.

Large regional disparity also exists, with girls born in the North (including North East, North West, Yorkshire and the Humber), expected to experience four years less good quality living than the national average, and up to six years less than girls born in the South East.

Placing women on trial

Another shocking point of discussion at FemHealth Integrates was the lack of female representation in clinical trials. Often, men are used as ‘default’ humans in drug development, and this can have severe consequences!

An example of this is the male bias in the clinical testing of the sleep medication zolpidem. This drug was originally tested on male subjects, and was later shown to metabolise more slowly in women. Consequently, some women that were prescribed zolpidem experienced extreme drowsiness, and this even led to an increase in car accidents. This example shows the potentially drastic effects of gender misrepresentation in clinical trials.

To improve drug efficacy and safety, more women must be included in clinical research, and any potential differences in drug responses between men and women should be investigated. Studies should also consider obstacles that can prevent women from participating in clinical trials, including childcare and any impacts on fertility.

Lack of women in investment and leadership

The Life Science Integrates and Bionow events highlighted that male bias in leadership and investment roles is a major obstacle. In the UK, only 15% of angel investors are women, and shockingly – only 2% of venture capital funding goes to female-led startups. Women are calling for better representation in board rooms, and more financial support for female-led companies.

Hopefully, by driving more awareness and conversations around gender inequalities in funding and leadership, these statistics may change in years to come.

Navigating a challenging landscape   

As we look back on the two events, it’s clear that women face several challenges in accessing healthcare and reaching their full potential. However, it’s not all doom and gloom! These events highlighted key takeaway messages that women can use to turn current negatives into future positives:

Be the change – Women need to be the change they want to see in their own organisations. This includes stepping into male-dominated roles, starting open conversations about women’s health, calling out stereotypes and behaviours, and pushing for better policies.

Embrace personal attributes – Identifying and embracing personal “superpowers”, including passion, persistence, authenticity, and courage can help women break stereotypes and progress in their careers.   

Find the balance – Balancing work and personal life can seem like an impossible task, particularly for women with childcare responsibilities! Rather than maintaining a continuous balance, prioritising work and life at different timepoints when needed can offer a more practical solution. Although it’s easier said than done, focusing on personal happiness rather than societal expectations and comparison is essential!

So, is the future female?

It’s clear that there’s still a long way to go in achieving gender equality across the life sciences and healthcare. Yet, we are heading in the right direction. Events like those organised by Life Science Integrates and Bionow are improving awareness of these persisting challenges, and bringing people together to come up with tangible steps forward. Hopefully with more events like these, we can continue elevating diversity and equality in our sector.

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