Lesbian, bisexual and other women who have sex with women (LBWSW) experience a range of health inequalities, face barriers to accessing healthcare and have poor experiences when they do. That’s not good enough and I am determined to do what I can to make things better for my constituents. Nationally we know that:

• 37% of women had been told they did not require a cervical screening test due to their sexual orientation, resulting in over half disengaging from screening programmes, believing they were not at risk.
• 21% of bisexual women and 12% of lesbian women reported a long term mental health problem, compared to 4% of heterosexual women.
• 29% of lesbian and bisexual women report more binge drinking compared to 12% in the general population of women.
• 36% of lesbian and bisexual women (LB) reported health professionals assumed they were heterosexual.

For lesbian and bisexual women in Brighton & Hove concerned about these issues, the LGBT Health & Inclusion Project (HIP) at the LGBT Switchboard aims to bridge local LGBT communities and the Council, NHS and other services, and is an excellent source of advice and support.

Health inequalities matter every week of this year, but this week in particular I hope we can make a positive difference to lesbian and bisexual women’s experiences and health outcomes.

For more see #LBWomensHealth17 or https://nationallgbtpartnership.org/.