From insight to impact: How SAGE women's health is championing the future of women's health.

At SAGE Women’s Health , we have deliberately moved beyond simply chronicling disparities to actively shaping the discourse through curated research and critical analyses that catalyse meaningful change. Our published special issues and forthcoming collections are more than compilations; they represent a strategic and sustained commitment to advancing gender equity within the public health and policy arenas. Present below are some of the illustrative examples from Sage Women’s Health : The Covid-19 pandemic laid bare and further exposed the realities of existing health disparities, provider burnout, and issues around access to healthcare, while also exacerbating them further. Over the last five years, Women’s Health has made a substantial contribution to our global understanding of the pandemic, publishing over 200 articles centred on COVID-19 and women’s health, as well as a dedicated special collection. Our most impactful articles have documented the myriad ways the pandemic affected women, providing tools and insights on how they can empower themselves, on how future researchers can explore identified areas of inquiry, and practitioners and policymakers can bring about changes in the system. As examples, Rodríguez Quejada et al. documented key menstrual cycle disturbances following COVID-19 contraction and vaccination, calling for long-term follow-up and continued research to understand the impact of the pandemic on reproductive health. 1 Cupid and Bogues highlighted culturally tailored coping strategies used by Black women healthcare professionals who convened informal co-worker/friend networks, known as “sister circles”, to aid in navigating the “double pandemic”, a term used to describe the lived experiences of Black individuals who simultaneously experienced a public health crisis and systemic racism. 2 Alderson et al. interviewed mothers who experienced intimate partner violence during the pandemic to better understand how increased parenting time and decreased access to larger social networks created violent, mentally draining environments for women. 3 Building on this foundational work, our forthcoming Special Collection, “ Five Years of the COVID-19 Pandemic: What We Have Learnt About the Impact on Women’s Health ,” will consolidate this evidence through a multidisciplinary lens, ensuring the hard-won lessons of the pandemic inform a more equitable future for public health crisis response.

Sexual and reproductive health is a cornerstone of our journal’s mission, with a strong emphasis on advancing the field from a narrow focus on choice toward a broader framework of justice, equity, and rights. This commitment is reflected in our diverse portfolio of thematic collections and special issues, including Sexual and Reproductive Health Across Africa: Challenges and Opportunities, Abortion Around the World – Policies, Prevalence, Complications, and Sexual and Reproductive Justice in HIV Prevention, Care, and Advocacy: Intersectional Perspectives, which collectively address structural, legal, and social determinants shaping SRH outcomes globally. Our collection spans the multiple stages of the reproductive life course, from adolescence to later adulthood. This includes focused work on Emerging Issues in Adolescent and Young Adult Sexual, Reproductive, and Gender Health, Improving Menstrual Health throughout the Reproductive Life Course (Volumes 1 and 2), and Access to Material Basic Needs and Women’s Health, highlighting the intersections between biological, social, and economic dimensions of SRH. We have also advanced interdisciplinary perspectives through collections such as The Peripartum Phase – An Interdisciplinary and Interprofessional Challenge and Infections During Pregnancy: State of the Field and Future Directions. In parallel, our journal has contributed to cutting-edge and emerging areas, including Women’s Reproductive Health and Related Disorders: Advances in Molecular Mechanisms and Emerging Therapeutic Strategies and Onco-Fertility: Bridging the Gap Between Cancer and Reproductive Health, ensuring that biomedical innovation is contextualised within ethical, social, and equity-oriented frameworks. Across these collections, we have published influential research on transgender and gender-diverse people’s experiences with endometriosis and affirming care, women’s lived experiences of endometriosis pain management, and postpartum perceptions of social support. By centring rights-based approaches, promoting equity in access, and prioritising culturally sensitive interventions across the hormonal lifespan, our journal continues to contribute meaningfully to the global pursuit of universal sexual and reproductive health coverage.

The rising, yet under-prioritised, burden of non-communicable diseases in women demands specific attention. Our journal is actively building the evidence base to meet this challenge. We have published insightful articles on virtually delivered lifestyle interventions for obese pregnant people, and studies exploring the connection between postpartum social networks and health behaviours. Several examples follow. Firstly, Kent-Marvick et al. examined the role of social support networks in postpartum women’s health behaviours and weight loss. 4 Their findings showed that intimate partners have a key influence on establishing norms around food choice and that postpartum women experience disturbances to their mental health when health care providers discuss weight loss without empathy and compassion. Secondly, Jeffrey et al. conducted a review of transgender and gender diverse individuals’ experiences with endometriosis treatment. 5 Their report showed that among members of this marginalised population, general barriers, like a lack of available practitioners, are exacerbated by discriminatory care that is rooted in a lack of culturally competent training in medical schools. They call for further analyses and adjustments to medical school curricula. Finally, Natalia et al. explored the personal stories of women healing from breast surgeries, both cosmetic and cancer related. 6 They found that breasts are constructed as a central aspect of femininity, and having scars can take a major toll on a woman’s sense of self. Many women display resilience by coping in diverse ways, including tattooing the breast area and creative expression through arts and writing. While no single dedicated special issue on NCDs exists yet, our ongoing collections, such as “ Advancing Chronic Illness Management ” “ Social Determinants of Health ” and “ Across the Hormonal Lifespan: Sex Hormones, Musculoskeletal Integrity, and Metabolic Health, ” are directly creating the platform for the cutting-edge research needed to tailor prevention, detection, and care to women’s unique needs.

The need to elevate women’s position in the health and care workforce is no longer an issue of representation alone, as this is fundamental to building just, resilient, and effective health systems globally. Women’s Health has been at the forefront of this agenda, curating a series of Special Collections that illuminate both structural barriers and transformative pathways. The collection “ Advancing Women’s Leadership in Health Systems: Pathways, Practices, and Global Perspectives” foregrounds organisational, policy, and cultural levers that drive systems that systematically undervalue their labour. Relatedly, the collection “A Woman’s Labour” – Speculations, Interpretations and Evaluations of Health Inequalities Beyond Disciplines extends this perspective by focusing on how women’s work (either paid and unpaid, formal or informal) intersects with health inequalities, thereby prompting analytical perspectives that transcend disciplinary silos. Across three consecutive International Women’s Day collections, Break the Bias , Embrace Equity , and Inspire Inclusion , the journal has illuminated empirical studies, reflections, and innovations that unearth gendered hierarchies while providing actionable strategies to overcome them. Concurrently, these collections argue that amplifying women’s experiences, leadership, and rights is not a thematic addition but a precondition for an equitable health system. To further improve the position of women in the health and care workforce, we are launching another Special Issue titled “The Invisible Woman Experience: Everyday Bias, Gendered Assumptions, and Systemic Invisibility.” This collection will build upon impactful published work, such as studies exploring the support systems and workplace messages for Black women healthcare professionals, to amplify lived experiences, dissect structural barriers, and propose actionable reforms.

In recognition of violence against women (VAW) as a global health emergency, Women’s Health continuously pioneers rigorous, practice-informed scholarship for strengthening care pathways and informing policy reforms. In this light, a dedicated special collection was launched to showcase impactful research that presents novel and compelling results, conclusions and evidence-informed recommendations to slow the prevalence of violence against women and associated adverse implications. This joint-journal collection strived to illuminate how emotional, physical, and sexual violence intersect with women’s physical, psychological, and somatic health over time. The contributions to the collection, among other things, underscored that intimate partner violence is not a discrete event but a chronic, multisystem burden that necessitates coordinated health, social, and legal responses. Several influential articles have been published in the journal through this special collection, all seeking to advance the realisation of SDG target 5.2 (eliminating violence against women). Country-specific articles from Australia , the Philippines , Nepal , the United Kingdom , and the United States in this collection demonstrated the global reach of efforts to prevent and respond to violence against women while foregrounding locally grounded solutions. These studies chart timelines of abuse, mental health sequelae, rights-based challenges, help-seeking patterns, and innovative online psychoeducational interventions tailored for survivors in resource-constrained or culturally specific contexts. Building on this foundation, future editorial priorities include dedicated thematic issues in VAW that sharpen the focus on intervention development, implementation, and scale-up, as well as survivor-centred policy and legal reforms. By consolidating evidence on what works, for whom, and in which contexts, the journal aims to close critical gaps in the literature and support more responsive, equitable systems of care for women affected by VAW worldwide.

Gender parity in leadership is non-negotiable for shaping equitable and effective health systems worldwide. Our ongoing commitment to this principle is exemplified in our upcoming special issue, Advancing Women’s Leadership in Health Systems: Pathways, Practices, and Global Perspectives , which explores mentorship, policy reforms, and innovative strategies to dismantle structural barriers holding women back. This builds on our rich tradition of amplifying women’s voices across multiple thematic collections. Previous special issues, such as A Woman’s Labour” – Speculations, Interpretations and Evaluations of Health Inequalities Beyond Disciplines , have deepened understanding of gendered health disparities, while our International Women’s Day collections, Inspire Inclusion , Embrace Equity , and Break the Bias , have celebrated progress and challenged systemic inequities with global perspectives and calls to action. Together, these special collections serve as a foundation for fostering leadership pathways that empower women to thrive as decision-makers, innovators, and changemakers in science and public health. Elevating women’s participation is essential not only for gender justice but for advancing healthier, more resilient communities worldwide.

Through this focused and evolving body of work, SAGE Women’s Health is not merely documenting or observing the future of women’s health; we are actively shaping and constructing it. Each publication, whether an original research article, critical commentary, or curated special issue, serves as a deliberate building block, designed to inform policy, influence practice, and inspire innovation. By consistently prioritising rigorous evidence, intersectional perspectives, and actionable insights, we are driving a transformative agenda that supports women’s leadership, amplifies marginalised voices, and addresses complex health challenges at their roots. In doing so, we are laying the groundwork for a more equitable, inclusive, and sustainable future for women’s health across the globe.