100 YEARS OF SPECULATIVE WOMEN’S HEALTHCARE

Women comprise more than half the world’s population (United Nations, 2023), yet historically, the world has been designed for and by men (Perez, 2019), frequently neglecting women’s needs and perspectives. Women experience disproportionate health inequalities, there is less funding to tackle illnesses that are more prevalent in women and a lack of research focusing on improving women’s health (Galea and Parekh, 2023; White and Clayton, 2022). There is an urgent need for a greater understanding of women’s health throughout their lives (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, 2023), moving beyond a focus on just reproductive and maternal health. T his timeline aims to consider the potential lifespan of a woman born in 2024, for their 100 years of care and beyond, forming a speculative tool for designers, researchers and policymakers. Two sections of the timeline ‘caring’ and ‘being cared for’ intersect at points showing the close relationship between them. This timeline advocates and speculates for a broader understanding of feminism in design, going beyond the consideration of who is involved to focus on the how and why of design. This aligns with feminist activism expanding upon Place (2023), transforming existing structures to promote equality and inclusivity and centring feminist ways of knowing and doing within the design process. The term women in the context of ‘women’s health’ is inclusive of both sex as a biological variable and gender as a social variable across the life course and people assigned female at birth, transgender women, transgender men, and non-binary people’, as defined by experts for the Women’s Health Innovation Map (2023). The timeline prompts thoughts on: • The School of Care—inspiring women in/through healthcare to create leaders and researchers in women’s care, whilst fostering care in society. • A culture of care at work, supporting ‘Squiggly careers’ (Tupper, H. and Ellis, S, 2020) to work and fit around life events, skill development to encourage flexibility, trust, autonomy, nurturing women’s wellbeing and respond to needs including menstrual cycles, pregnancy, menopause and mental health. • A culture of care for women in society—no judgements on life/relationship choices, equalising the care system to alleviate and share emotional and hidden labour and inclusive access to care activities for all, not just the privileged. • Addressing ‘sandwich care’ challenges (caring for children and parents), including the care idea of paying care forward through #carency and support to adopt children as an equal choice. • Vital monitor from birth to check vitals (e.g. glucose levels, hormones, stages of life and allergies), reducing screening. • Caring choices in society—Alternative hobby choices from an early age to introduce young women to leadership, care, creativity and equality. Expanded education/work/life choices for a supportive society that creates change makers for the next iteration of our planet, healthy living environments, including ‘blue zones’. • Celebrating through all life stages—renaming menopause, celebrating older women and increasing their visibility. Pay it forward #carency pairs the older generation with younger carers taking on this role to build #carency for themselves in later life. • (Not) the end of life care—How can we prepare memories and extend our identity before and after death echoing ‘Ongoingness’ (Wallace and Josh, 2022).