Two women are making changes to women’s health 2023
With ‘Menstrual Health and Hygiene Day’ approaching, here is the tale of two women entrepreneurs who are creating safe spaces for women’s health.
Khushali Samriya and Uttara Seshu, who work in menstrual and maternal health, are breaking this stigma. They launched Kara, a women’s health project that fosters safe reproductive health conversations.
Breaking glass ceiling
The initiative’s soul, Delhi-based Khushali Samriya, has worked in women’s health for half a decade. Samriya worked in rural India as an entrepreneur at 24. An expert in solving women’s health issues that go overlooked.
Her technical experience helps her connect women’s voices to technology. We can change women’s health with every keystroke using digital health technologies and AI. “At Kara, we aim to bring women’s health and technology together to ensure that no woman in this world loses her life due to basic life events like menstruation and pregnancy,” says Khushali.
US-based Uttara Seshu, a Penn State University doctoral student in public health, is enthusiastic about women’s health. The 29-year-old has spent half a decade working in rural Bihar, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Pennsylvania as a Graduate Research Assistant on pregnancy outcomes after COVID-19.
Her broad background strives to emphasize women’s health challenges. “Our goal is to ensure a life of dignity for women and girls by providing reproductive knowledge and a platform like Kara to voice their health issues,” she adds.
Menstruation is ripe for exploration in women’s health.
Years of misinformation have hurt women’s health. These concerns are finally being addressed. Thus, Khushali and Uttara formed #Haqhai through their organization to address the problem of period leaves, which has garnered news in recent months due to the Supreme Court of India petition.
#Haqhai insists on period leave. Khushali says, “We need to start talking about Period leaves, there are studies that suggest the discomfort and pain women undergo during periods. We want to mainstream the talk about period discomfort because a policy like this will give women a voice.”
The movement mobilizes groups across to support period leave in India. This will allow women to communicate, which is what prevents them from seeking healthcare. They think women should quit using medicines to prove themselves at work and home!
