London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 17, 2025

Period products for NHS staff 'a basic necessity'

Period products for NHS staff 'a basic necessity'

A leading Scottish ICU consultant has told the BBC of the dread female staff can feel knowing that they could be about to bleed through their scrubs but have no access to pads or tampons.

Dr Rosie Baruah backed the BMA's call for period products to be provided in all NHS staff toilets.

She said the products should be viewed as a basic necessity not a luxury.

The British Medical Association said it was a dignity in work issue and called for all staff to have access.

It said providing period products could play a huge role in the wellbeing and comfort of their staff.

The union said it was disappointed that too many responses to Freedom of Information requests submitted by Scottish Labour MSP Monica Lennon showed health boards still did not even have a policy of making period products available and accessible.

The FOI responses showed there had been improvements in comparison to February 2020 but five of Scotland's 14 health boards stated that free period products were not provided to staff, including NHS Lothian.

Dr Baruah, a consultant in critical care and anaesthesia in Edinburgh, told BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime programme that getting through a busy shift and being able to change your menstrual protection as often as needed was not always easy.

She said this had become even more of an issue during the pandemic with doctors and nurses wearing full PPE and following strict guidelines.

The consultant said period products were available in schools and in hospitals for all patients who may need them but health boards did not have an obligation to provide them for staff.

Period products are available in schools and in hospitals for patients but not all staff


Dr Baruah said menstruation was often "unpredictable" and "frequently messy". She said doctors and nurses could be working far from their usual clinical area with a patient in critical need.

"While you might have access to toilet facilities, if there are no period products there you can end up stuffing your underwear with toilet paper," she said.

"I have had colleagues who have to cut up patient's incontinence pads to place in their own underwear until they can access period products."

Dr Baruah said period products should be seen as a basic hygiene essential like toilet roll.

"They are seen as this added extra, this luxury, whereas I see them as being absolutely fundamental to being able to function at work."

Stress and embarrassment


The critical care consultant said she was well-paid and could afford period products but this was not about cost instead it was an issue of access to products to avoid stress and embarrassment.

"It is massively distracting at a time when you can't afford to be distracted," she said.

Ms Lennon said there was a lack of leadership on the issue and health boards should get their act together.

The Scottish Labour MSP said doctors should not have to worry about bleeding through their scrubs.

"We want employers around the country to do the right thing by their staff and I really think health boards should be leading the way on that."

A Scottish government spokesperson said: "Scotland was the first country in the world to make period products widely available for free. We believe that being able to access period products is fundamental to equality, dignity and human rights.

"We expect that NHS boards should provide period products for free for women who need them, when they need them, and that this is a fundamental aspect of their care.

"The Scottish government previously confirmed with all NHS boards that sanitary products are freely available for women that need them in all appropriate wards in all hospitals.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
×