‘I knew I was in labour’ – why are women being turned away from hospital during childbirth?

As a number of women recount how they were mistakenly told to go home and wait, before giving birth on the pavement or in a lift, experts warn that more investment in early-labour care is needed

Drama out of crisis: how theatre and improv teach lessons in sexual consent

Exploring consent issues through interactive drama and comedy can effect lasting change, whether tackling violence against sex workers in Africa, sex education in South America or abuse in UK schools

Women get worse care after a heart attack than men – must they shout louder?

This glaring gender divide is worrying, writes GP Ann Robinson. More must be done to fix the problem – and both men and women should avoid underplaying symptoms

Was Serena Williams unrealistic to try to return so soon after giving birth?

The tennis champion has withdrawn from the Australian Open three months after having her first child. So, when is the right time to come back to sport?

To be happier, women should try giving up on being good

Women are more unhappy than men, and men are blamed for this. But perhaps men aren’t the real culprits

Why are Germany’s midwives feeling squeezed out?

Fewer midwives are attending to birth in the country, where insurance premiums are punitive and medical intervention is increasingly widespread. And it’s not only mothers who are missing their skills

‘We’re having a menstrual liberation’: how periods got woke

Periods happen to half the population – so why are they still treated as something to hide? Meet the activists seeing red

Extreme Wives With Kate Humble review – threats and rescues in a Kenyan village

The presenter gets involved with danger, including the rescue of a girl, during her visit to Kenya’s Kuria people, who practise female genital mutilation

Rapid use of blood drug could save thousands of lives, study finds

Analysis shows chance of death from blood loss is 70% less likely if cheap, widely used tranexamic acid is administered promptly

Why Nancy Friday’s 1970s collection of women’s sexual fantasies still matters

The author of My Secret Garden – a shocking and deeply sexy work – has died, leaving a legacy to inspire younger generations