Many people know the IWK for its extraordinary care for children. But women have always been part of that care as well. Our vision: We are revolutionizing children, youth, and women’s health now and for future generations.
Welcome to our revolution.
In early 2025, the IWK Foundation launched a Maritime-wide women’s health survey to better understand women’s experiences and uncover health gaps. The response was unprecedented.
We heard from 27,317 women to be exact and more than 13,000 took the time to write and share their stories in what is now the largest open survey on women’s health in Canada.
At that time, we wrote a personal Letter to the Women of the Maritimes. We wanted the women to know they were heard. We are now releasing a second Letter to the Women of the Maritimes and invite you to read it.
Meaningful, lasting change only happens when we work together and make our voices heard. That’s why we’re proud to officially launch WHEN: Women’s Health Equity Now—a movement grounded in evidence, shaped directly by women’s lived experiences, focused on action, and built on a clear truth that it will take all of us.
WHEN reflects a simple but firm belief: women’s health cannot wait. It cannot be addressed quietly, incrementally, or someday. Equity requires leadership, focus, and urgency…now. It is a long-term commitment to change how women’s health is understood, taught, funded, and delivered. And it is built on the understanding that real systemic change only happens when people step forward together.
We are asking the community to join our pledge in making that change.
Our pledge
We pledge to support research that includes women and focuses on the conditions that affect them most;
We pledge to strengthen women’s health data, so prevention, diagnosis and treatment reflect women’s unique biology and lived experience;
We pledge to evolve to a health care system that understands and responds to the full spectrum of women’s lives;
We pledge to advance education that recognizes how sex and gender differences influence care;
And, we pledge to creating a future where our daughters, sisters, mothers, and friends receive the care they need, when they need it.
This is our pledge to real, lasting change.
The WHEN Movement: Our Five Areas of Focus
Learn about Women: Education
We must transform how the system learns and teaches about women and women’s health. That means stronger training, better education, and greater understanding of women’s bodies—beginning early and continuing across every stage of care.
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Research Women
Women’s health is often under-researched and misunderstood, leading to delayed diagnoses and limited, ineffective care. Closing the gap requires investing in inclusive, women-focused research that reflects diverse experiences—because strong evidence is essential to improving women’s health outcomes.
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Invest in Women: Innovation
Innovation in women's health has been historically underfunded, leaving many tools and solutions misaligned with women’s needs or missing altogether. Investing in women-designed innovation can improve health outcomes across women's lifespan.
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Leading for the Health of Women: Advocacy and Partnerships
Closing the women’s health gap requires a collective effort on the national and regional level. Through advocacy and strategic partnerships, we are driving systemic change and investing in initiatives to improve healthcare for all women.
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Care for Women: Equipment and Patient Spaces
By investing in essential equipment and patient-centered environments, the IWK is ensuring the best possible care for women.
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The Case for Advancing Women’s Health in Canada
Developed with Deloitte Canada, this report highlights critical gaps in women’s health across the country, outlines progress made so far, and identifies opportunities for meaningful, transformative change.
Read the Survey Summary
Explore the data, hear the voices, and join the call for change. Thanks to everyone who participated—this is more than a report; it’s a movement built on shared experiences and a drive for better healthcare.
Open Letter to Maritime Women
We see you, we hear you, and you are not alone. Take a moment to read Jennifer Gillivan’s open letter to women in the Maritimes—a message of compassion, strength, and solidarity in women’s health.
The Fifth Wave
The Fifth Wave—Curing the Health Care Bias Against Women—is a podcast exploring gender bias in healthcare, elevating women’s voices, and pushing for equity in research, care, and outcomes.
Halifax Tides FC
Halifax Tides FC and the IWK Foundation are committed to working together to champion women in sport and inspire action to close the women’s health gap locally, nationally, and internationally.
WHCC
Women's Health Collective Canada (WHCC) is an alliance of Canada’s leading women’s health and hospital foundations working together to advance equity in women’s health research and care with unified action.