Women’s health is in crisis. In many places, gynaecology waiting lists are rising or are even at record lengths.
Even when a woman sees a specialist, there are terrifying accounts of what human rights body the Council of Europe defines as “gynaecological violence”. That includes not just performing diagnostic procedures without adequate pain control, but also a lack of compassion for the patient. Such reports are shocking, but perhaps not surprising when you consider how little some aspects of women’s medicine have changed in hundreds of years – and the unpleasant history they carry.
Once a woman gets to her appointment with the specialist, a speculum is the usual way of seeing what’s happening inside the body. These devices go back to ancient Rome. They comprise two or three “bills” which need to be opened up inside the body to give the best view.
The speculum is traditionally metal, meaning that it’s cold unless pre-warmed. A new design is now being worked on by a group of female designers and engineers. The Yona has a silicone surface and a much less threatening appearance. This is an important development in women’s healthcare given that the vaginal speculum has remained largely unchanged since the nineteenth century.
But more than the metallic noises and coldness, it is the invasiveness of…
