This is what your employees want when it comes to endometriosis support

Endometriosis impacts 1 in 10 people with a uterus. Despite it being the second most common gynaecological condition in the UK, it still takes an average of 8 years to get a diagnosis.

March is Endometriosis Awareness Month and we're shining a spotlight on this condition and its impact in the workplace. As employers, it's crucial to understand how this can affect your employees, and we’ll give you some tips on how you can offer support.

Let’s start with the basics – what is endometriosis?

Endometriosis is a common yet often misunderstood condition where tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside of the womb. This misplaced endometrial-like tissue can attach itself to various pelvic organs and structures, such as the ovaries, fallopian tubes, outer surface of the uterus, bowel, or bladder.?This can lead to severe pain during periods, as well as other symptoms like fatigue, infertility, and gastrointestinal issues. Despite its prevalence, the cause of endometriosis is still unknown and there is no definite cure.

How can this affect someone at work?

Endometriosis can have a significant impact on someone's professional life. ?Many people with endometriosis struggle to manage their symptoms while working; the chronic pain and fatigue associated with endometriosis can result in missed work, decreased productivity, and frequent doctor’s appointments.

Some facts and figures for you:

• One in six women felt that they had to leave their job due to endometriosis
• 55% have had to have time off work ‘often’ or ‘very often’
• Endometriosis costs the UK economy ￡8.2 billion per year in loss of work and healthcare

Knowing all of this, how can you give support as an employer?

As an employer, you want to make sure everyone feels supported, safe, and valued within your workplace. It’s important to have a clear women’s health policy that highlights where your employees can ask for help and exactly what kind of support they can get.

Your women’s health policy should acknowledge how endometriosis can affect someone's life and highlight that support isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Keep in mind that while these guidelines and tips can be a great place to start, every individual's experience with endometriosis is unique, so be ready to tailor your support to their specific needs and situation.

If you need some inspiration to get started, check out our women’s health policy template. It includes the reasons why a policy like this is so important and outlines some examples of how employees can book time off, access support, and how many days an employee should be entitled to. We also include a section with women's health terminology that covers some of the more confusing and lesser-known terms.

?? Download our free Women's Health Policy template here, to help draft your own.

Our guidelines and tips for employers:

1. Offer flexible working arrangements: Offer flexible work hours or remote work options to accommodate medical appointments and help relieve the stress of commuting during endo flare-ups, which can be debilitating to go through.

2. Educate employees and managers: Provide educational resources about endometriosis to increase understanding among all staff members. Managers should be trained to be empathetic and active listeners who can advocate for their team members’ needs.

3. Implement workplace adjustments: Make simple accommodations, for example providing hot water bottles that employees can use on their tummies or backs, or chairs if their job requires them to stand for long periods of time. Again, this will depend on the needs of the individual, so let them lead this discussion.

4. Offer healthcare and fertility benefits: It takes around 8 years on average just to get diagnosed with endometriosis. That's a lot of doctor's appointments and even more uncertainty. And when an individual finally get that diagnosis, treatment and managing the condition can become a whole new challenge. By giving your employees access to the medical care they need, you're not just helping to drive better health outcomes, you're letting them know it's absolutely okay to ask for support. Chat with us for more information on implementing Women's Health benefits at your company ??

5. Build a supportive workplace culture: All of the above points lead to this same end goal: creating an open and supportive workplace culture where employees feel comfortable discussing their health needs without fear of judgment.

As an employer, if you step up to support employees with women’s health conditions like endometriosis, you're not just showing you care about their wellbeing, you're also making your workplace more inclusive and better for everyone.

If you’re interested in how you can implement effective support for endometriosis in your company, give us a call: https://www.fertifa.com/get-in-touch

We’d love to speak about how we can support your employees through women's health challenges, like endometriosis ??