excerpt from Jenn Siegenthaler, "The Second Wave of American Feminism and the Women’s Health Movement"
The women’s health movement that grew out of the second wave of American feminism in the 1960s and 1970s raised awareness and propelled change in society’s recognition and treatment of the female body. The movement continues to be a powerful force today, often directly influencing political agendas and mainstream organizations and institutions. Issues concerning women’s health are also addressed at a much smaller scale as well. One example is a lecture about women and heart disease that took place on March 28, 2006 at Susquehanna University, a private academic institution. The lecture was presented by cardiologist Kimberly Skelding. As one of few women cardiologists, Skelding has been especially keen to the problems regarding women and heart disease. Women experiencing a heart attack or other heart problems are sometimes seen by medical professionals as acting hysterically. Thus accurate diagnosis and prompt or appropriate treatment may not occur. Also, too few women are part of clinical studies, and many with heart disease or other conditions believe they do not receive the same level of care or are taken as seriously as males. The efforts of the organizers of the lecture at Susquehanna University, along with their distribution of heart disease information and participation in the Go Red campaign all strove to raise awareness to the importance of educating women about a significant health issue. As evident by the issue of heart disease, there are still a number of health concerns that are central to the women’s health movement today. These include the medicalization of birthing and menopause, the treatment of social and emotional disorders, the continuing and problematic emphasis on female’s reproductive role rather than overall health, and the lack of focus on the prevention of various diseases. While numerous remarkable advances have been made in providing better health care for women, many more important changes and developments aim to continue to improve women’s health in the future.
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