Supporting
women's intimate
health with Bayer

Bayer partnered with Ada Health to create a digital tool for self-assessment, symptom checking and health insights that serves as a safe space for women to get answers about intimate health issues.

Although 93% of women made appointments with their healthcare providers during a one-year period 1 , fewer than three-quarters scheduled general checkups or well-woman visits. The number of women skipping out on essential healthcare is significant, especially given that one in three women experience reproductive or gynecological health issues 2 . As a result, women’s intimate health issues often go undiagnosed. 3

"Digital health is playing an increasingly important role moving forward and is evolving," says Rohan Kamath, Head of Global Strategic Commercial Intelligence at Bayer Consumer Health. "We see healthcare brands and healthcare businesses trying to meet this increased demand for information and education through their brands, through their platforms to bring more credible information, products, and solutions."

By the numbers

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See also: Bayer and Ada's webinar 'Supporting patients through partnerships'
Together, we're addressing some of the startling gaps in women’s access to care. 4
  • 29% of women felt that their doctor dismissed their concerns during a healthcare appointment.
  • disease 1 in 10 women experienced discrimination based on gender, race, sexual orientation or other personal characteristics when receiving healthcare.
  • bill 21% reported that it was difficult to find doctors who explained things in a manner that was easy to understand.
“There's apprehension among some consumers to go and talk about intimate health to a pharmacist or a doctor,” says Kamath. “A digital tool becomes a first secure point, which can then be supplemented with a healthcare provider or a pharmacist engagement, so it's a credible first step through the digital journey.”

The problem

Vaginal infections are also common with an estimated 70% of women diagnosed with vulvovaginal candidiasis once during reproductive age—and more than 40% experience recurrent infections, 5 making yeast infections the second most common cause of genital infection among women, 6 which, if left untreated can lead to an increased risk of health issues. 7

Many women may feel uncomfortable seeking medical treatment for intimate health issues—but also need support to understand the cause of their symptoms. Research found that just over 26% of women who thought they had yeast infections made the correct self-diagnosis. 8

Daria Costantini, Brand Lead for Canesten, Bayer Consumer Health, notes that women experiencing intimate health issues often feel stigma and shame that makes them reluctant to make an appointment for suspected yeast infections.

"The reason we exist as a brand is to help free people from shame and discomfort," she says. "Knowing the struggle that women are facing every day, we knew that we had to do something to enable women to be able to self-diagnose in an easy and more convenient way."

The solution

Women need tools that enable equitable healthcare access. 4 Currently, just 1% of $198 billion invested in healthcare research and innovation is directed toward women’s health conditions and the latest data found that there were zero approvals for med tech devices aimed at gynecological infections. 9

"Digital is the way to do it," says Costantini. "We understood very early on that digital innovation was going to be a key enabler for us to be able to champion the self-diagnosis agenda [and be] the sustainable solution to give access to as many women as possible."

Artificial intelligence (AI) has gained traction due to its potential to overcome barriers to stigmatized areas of healthcare, including sexual health. 10

"There's a lot of buzz around AI. For us, it was all about finding the right balance between technology and trust... credible, trustworthy science and solutions–that was the key," Kamath says. "Working with Ada was all about finding the right balance between technology and trust."

Embarking on a personalized health revolution for women’s intimate health issues was the next step in the journey to provide a holistic one-stop solution for intimate health conditions. The AI-powered health assessment platform asks targeted questions and generates data-driven care options and recommendations for the next steps in seeking care, including opportunities to educate women about the condition, view available Canesten products with online and brick-and-mortar locations, and purchase treatments.

"Healthcare and digital health companies like Ada and Bayer are enabling and accelerating self-care through their brands and products," says Kamath. "Ada's capabilities around symptom assessment and AI, with a focus on unlocking significant value, and enabling self-care for consumers and women, really complemented our brands."

The assessment does more than assist women who complete the questionnaire and access treatment options for intimate health issues; it also serves as an important tool for ongoing education about women's intimate health issues.

"Each consumer we reach is a consumer that we've helped and, especially with intimate health conditions; we've created a knowledge pool that can then pass on to family members and daughters, Kamath says. "That piece is also super powerful because we are creating new knowledge, awareness about conditions that may have then gone unmanaged."
“…Ada and Bayer are enabling and accelerating self-care through their brands and products. Together, we’re really helping consumers, but also reducing the strain on the healthcare system. It’s really well-packaged and a credible solution.”
Picture of Rohan Kamath

Rohan Kamath

Head of Global Strategic Commercial Intelligence at Bayer Consumer Health

The impact

The benefits of digital tools go beyond helping women access diagnoses and treatment options. By providing easy access to safe, discreet information, support and healthcare access, digital health tools provide women more autonomy and decision-making over their health and wellbeing. 11

"Ada is a great mechanism for consumers to really critically assess and understand their symptoms and get clarity on what conditions they might be suffering from," Kamath says. "[With Ada] engagement was much higher among consumers going through that journey versus what we had seen traditionally. We saw more time spent on the site, more time spent consuming educational content, and a much higher conversion of people looking to take action."

In the UK, Bayer Canesten is the second most visited website (behind the NHS) nationwide. The goal was to drive additional traffic to the website, increase dwell time and grow the number of users completing assessments and engaging with Canesten products and educational content. Ada’s symptom assessment became the biggest driver of traffic to the website.
“We are actually helping consumers through the digital journey to answer some of the questions that they wouldn’t have been able to answer had they not gone for a diagnosis or had not approached the doctor or the pharmacist.”
Picture of Daria Costantini

Daria Costantini

Brand Lead for Canesten, Bayer Consumer Health

"The depth of engagement was quite nice," Costantini says. "We are actually helping consumers through the digital journey to answer some of the questions that they wouldn't have been able to answer had they not gone for a diagnosis or had not approached the doctor or the pharmacist."

Ada Health takes a science-first approach to ensure that users can find the right care at the right time based on their current symptoms, individual health, and risk factors. Ada has a proven track record of working with pharmaceutical companies to develop registered digital medical devices, which is what Bayer wanted in a partner to support women's intimate health needs.

Since the partnership between Bayer and Ada launched in 2021, more than 430,000 women have completed assessments. Of those women, 37% were between the ages of 20 and 29, and 32% were between 30 and 39. The data highlights the value of digital health platforms like Ada for breaking taboos and removing barriers to care, especially among younger users.
The assessment tool also results in other significant impacts:
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Bayer and Ada are building on their successes and pursuing new opportunities to expand the partnership to support women's intimate health. Plans are in development to integrate an omni-channel approach that allows women to complete the digital symptom assessment by accessing a QR code in the women's intimate health section of the drugstore that provides recommendations for the appropriate treatment..

"We continue to increase the level of engagement with consumers," says Kamath. "The numbers are much stronger versus when we started off and that is trending well in terms of moving forward."

Ada's capabilities around symptom assessment and AI, with a focus on unlocking significant value and enabling self-care for consumers and women, proved to be such an effective complement to Bayer Consumer Health brands that the company is exploring further opportunities to partner with Ada on their precision health agenda.
“Ada’s symptom assessment is the biggest driver of traffic to the Canasten website. The site has become the number 1 online source of credible information after the NHS on intimate health.”
Picture of Rohan Kamath

Rohan Kamath

Head of Global Strategic Commercial Intelligence at Bayer Consumer Health

Future outlook

Bayer and Ada are building on their successes and pursuing new opportunities to expand the partnership to support women's intimate health. Plans are in development to integrate an omni-channel approach that allows women to complete the digital symptom assessment by accessing a QR code in the women's intimate health section of the drugstore that provides recommendations for the appropriate treatment..

"We continue to increase the level of engagement with consumers," says Kamath. "The numbers are much stronger versus when we started off and that is trending well in terms of moving forward."

Ada's capabilities around symptom assessment and AI, with a focus on unlocking significant value and enabling self-care for consumers and women, proved to be such an effective complement to Bayer Consumer Health brands that the company is exploring further opportunities to partner with Ada on their precision health agenda.

Kamath believes that partnering with Ada, with healthcare-specific tools backed by science that can be deployed on a global scale, is key as the connection between life sciences and digital health becomes an essential component of holistic healthcare.

"[Pharma and digital health] have to and will coexist. The role of digital health is becoming increasingly important post-COVID [and] consumers are a lot more comfortable doing a lot of that journey of self-care and knowledge themselves as a first step before going to a doctor," he says. "Digital health has become a new baseline, and I expect to continue."

You can read more about the partnership and watch the webinar with Rohan here

Watch webinar and read summary

Get in touch to discuss how Ada can support your patient-engagement goals.

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Disclaimer: Ada Assess is not a substitute for advice from a healthcare professional and does not provide a final medical diagnosis.

  1. Kaiser Family Foundation. "Women's Health Care Utilization and Costs Findings from the 2020 KFF Women's Health Survey." https://www.kff.org/womens-health-policy/issue-brief/womens-health-care-utilization-and-costs-findings-from-the-2020-kff-womens-health-survey/. April 21, 2021.

  2. Public Health England. "Survey reveals women experience severe reproductive health issues." https://www.gov.uk/government/news/survey-reveals-women-experience-severe-reproductive-health-issues . June 26, 2018.

  3. World Economic Forum. "5 conditions that highlight the women's health gap." https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2024/05/womens-health-gap-healthcare/. May 3, 2024.

  4. Kaiser Family Foundation. "Women's Experiences with Provider Communication and Interactions in Health Care Settings: Findings from the 2022 KFF Women’s Health Survey." https://www.kff.org/womens-health-policy/issue-brief/womens-experiences-with-provider-communication-interactions-health-care-settings-findings-from-2022-kff-womens-health-survey/. February 22, 2023.

  5. National Library of Medicine. "Vaginal Candidiasis." https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/nbk459317/. February 3, 2024.

  6. Erfaninejad, M., Salahshouri, A. Amirrajab, N. "Barriers and facilitators of adherence to treatment among women with vulvovaginal candidiasis: A qualitative study." European Journal of Medical Research. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc9767851/. December 21, 2022.

  7. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. "Bacterial Vaginosis—Women's Health Guide." https://www.publichealth.va.gov/infectiondontpassiton/womens-health-guide/bacterial-vaginosis.asp.

  8. Hoffstetter, S.E., Barr, S. LeFevre, C. et al. "Self-reported yeast symptoms compared with clinical wet mount analysis and vaginal yeast culture in a specialty clinic setting." Journal of Reproductive Medicine. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18664056/. June 2008.

  9. McKinsey & Company. "Unlocking opportunities in women's healthcare." https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/healthcare/our-insights/unlocking-opportunities-in-womens-healthcare. February 14, 2022.

  10. World Health Organization. "The role of artificial intelligence in sexual health and reproductive health and rights." https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/376294/9789240090705-eng.pdf?sequence=1. March 21, 2024.

  11. World Health Organization. "Digital tools can help improve women's health and promote gender equity, WHO report shows." https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/08-03-2024-digital-tools-can-help-improve-women-s-health-and-promote-gender-equality--who-report-shows. March, 8, 2024.

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