Women are faced with a number of health issues throughout their lives, especially during midlife. Decisions may need to be made concerning menopause, issues to do with sexuality and relationships, maintenance of health in the longer term and specific prevention of conditions such as osteoporosis and heart disease. As every woman is different, how will you know if you're making informed decisions? Gathering information, thinking about options, knowing what it is you value and attuning yourself to all that you have learned about your body will help you make decisions that are appropriate for you. Gathering information and talking with your health practitioner can assist you in making an informed decision. 

Choosing a Health Practitioner 

Developing a partnership with your health practitioner will depend on a level of trust that insists on: 

• Mutual respect 

• Clear communication 

• Shared responsibility 

While it may take time and effort to establish this partnership, in the end it will be in your best interests to choose carefully. When choosing a health practitioner you could take into account: 

• Their expertise 

• How accessible they are (eg location, appointment times and fees) 

• Their ability to listen, empathise and communicate skilfully 

• Their willingness to involve you in the decision making process around your health care

Why Evidence Matters 

Information about health can be obtained from a variety of sources: family, friends, the media as well as health care professionals. With the advent of the World Wide Web, information is available more readily, making it increasingly hard to judge competing claims. The task is even harder when health claims are made with the underlying purpose of promoting a particular product. 

Interpreting Clinical Trials 

It is more difficult than you would expect to prove that a particular treatment prevented something from happening or relieved a particular condition. The results from using a particular treatment should be better than no treatment at all or using something that is already known to be helpful. Remember there are all kinds of reasons why people recover or do not get sick (such as spontaneous remission and 'strong' genes). 

To filter out effects NOT related to the treatment itself, high quality scientific studies must have a similar group (control group) that did not receive the treatment but are similar in most other respects (anecdotal evidence can be persuasive but not conclusive). The riskier or more powerful the treatment being considered, the more important it becomes to understand the results of scientific studies. This understanding can then help you balance the risks and the benefits of a particular health care decision.

Resources to help you understand Clinical Trials 

A valuable guide has been published in Australia. "Smart Health Choices - How To Make Informed Health Decisions" is written by Judy Irwig, Les Irwig and Melissa Sweet and published by Allen & Urwin. This 1999 book provides a readable background to understanding and interpreting clinical trials and supports the idea of informed decision making by addressing such issues as: 

• Health advice can be harmful 

• Your body, your choice 

• Stories vs studies 

• Evaluating the evidence 

• Improving your health care 

At the end of the day, the principles underlying the questions are easy to grasp. This book will give you the added assurance of up-to-date scientifically informed decision making. 

Special acknowledgement: Some of the material from this article has been provided by Rick Hudson, Policy and Planning Unit - Ministry of Health, British Columbia, Canada.

Sarah Hardy
The Jean Hailes Foundation for Women's Health

Content updated December 09, 2003