There are moments in my day when the “switch” happens almost instantly. One moment I am navigating the logistics of life with a young daughter; the next, I am stepping into my role as a healthcare executive, making decisions that shape both our teams and our True care culture across borders.
The shift can happen mid-thought, mid-conversation, mid-breath. We are expected to arrive fully present in each role - composed, focused and capable - without visible trace of the one we were holding seconds before.
No two women live the same life. Some are mothers; some are not. We are sisters, partners, daughters, friends and professionals, carrying different stories and responsibilities. Over time, our opportunities have grown, and with them, our choices. Yet many structures are still adapting to these new realities. Instead of replacing old expectations, new ones have been added alongside them, expanding the responsibilities women navigate.
That is precisely why the theme of International Women’s Day 2026, Give to Gain, resonates so strongly for us at Diaverum, where care is not only what we deliver to patients, but the mindset that shapes how we lead and how we design our organisation, a key part of our True care culture.
The invisible engine of healthcare
Healthcare runs significantly on women’s capacity - and with that reality comes a responsibility to build structures around them that are sustainable.
At Diaverum, that responsibility is not abstract. Approximately 76% of our workforce are nurses, and the vast majority are women. Indeed, women make up around 70% of the health and social care workforce globally, according to the World Health Organization. Healthcare systems depend greatly on women’s contributions.
That capacity is often shaped by a combination of pressures - clinical intensity, shift work, emotional labour, and responsibilities outside of work. For many, these pressures are not occasional but a consistent part of working life.
When women’s capacity is stretched over time, the impact is not theoretical. It affects retention, team stability and the long-term continuity that high-quality care depends on. In a sector built on sustained patient relationships, protecting that continuity is vital to organisational resilience. Supporting employee well-being therefore is a strategic priority for Diaverum, not only for individuals, but for the resilience of the care teams and organisations they sustain.
Leadership depends on sustainable capacity
Nowhere is the tension between capacity and expectation more visible than at the top. Despite forming the majority of the healthcare workforce, women hold only around 25% of senior leadership roles in global health organisations. As visibility and responsibility increase, representation declines.
Leadership roles often coincide with peak pressure years: intensified professional expectations alongside sustained or disproportionate unpaid responsibilities. When career progression demands greater availability at the same time capacity may already be stretched, balancing expectations can become challenging.
If we want women to remain in healthcare and rise within it, our organisations must be structured around sustainable capacity.
I see this not only as a leader, but through my personal lens. I became a mother later in life after years of working long hours to build a career. I completed further professional education while pregnant, determined to secure long-term stability. For many years, much of my work happened late at night, supported by childcare arrangements that I know many women do not have access to. That experience has shown me how much career progression for women is still sustained by personal endurance in some cases rather than structural support. Professional environments can sometimes assume constant availability, and many women adapt around it.
Designing for sustainable capacity is not lowering standards; it is future-proofing them.
For a global organisation like Diaverum, this goes beyond diversity ambition. We recognise that women navigate work and life within diverse cultural contexts. Designing leadership pathways that recognise employee well-being is therefore not simply a question of fairness — it is essential to build leadership that is durable, diverse, and able to sustain performance over time.
Capacity is not static
Capacity shifts across life stages. Some women are building their careers; others are caring for children or supporting ageing parents. Many will navigate perimenopause or menopause during peak professional years.
These transitions do not happen outside of work. They happen alongside it. When workplaces remain static while lives evolve, the strain accumulates, and talented professionals can in some cases step back, pause – or pursue different paths.
Designing for the lives women actually live
Dialysis cannot wait. Shifts must be covered. Patients come first.
That makes design more important, not less.
In healthcare systems around the world, organisations are exploring different ways to support sustainable careers aligned with local cultural norms. and employee well-being programmes. Phased returns after leave. Job-sharing and part-time pathways that do not stall careers, and promotion models that reward performance.
Across Diaverum’s 25 countries, contexts differ. Cultural expectations vary. Leave frameworks vary. We cannot adopt a single solution everywhere. But we can and we do define clear principles - fairness, dignity, adaptability, and sustainability - and apply them consistently across our markets taking into account the well-being of our teams and their aspirations.
Women form the backbone of this organisation. We rely on them, everywhere.
True care: the culture that makes this possible
Living our True care culture means we recognise that care applies not only to patients, but also to the people who deliver it. It is reflected in daily behaviours, decisions - and in how the women who sustain our care are supported in return.
Since joining Diaverum, what has stood out to me is its sense of authenticity – a culture where I feel free to be myself at work and bring the many roles I carry as a woman & a leader. I am not expected to arrive as a black suit with no private story behind it. I can speak openly with colleagues and leadership about what is happening in my life, and I feel safe doing so.
Culture can be a powerful driver of psychological safety, creating the conditions for people to perform to do their best work - something I see reflected in the way we work together across Diaverum. This commitment is also reflected in the way we support our people more broadly - through structured initiatives that focus on employee well-being, leadership development and long-term career growth, including our Health & Well-being initiative Diaverum4Health, the M42 Top Talent and Leadership programmes.
Give to Gain
In healthcare, women are giving - every single day. Clinical excellence. Emotional resilience. Stability. Leadership. They anchor teams and sustain patient relationships over years of treatment.
Women are the foundations of sustainable care. And the return on offering them a work environment built on equity and reciprocity is clear: stronger retention, healthier teams and long-term organisational strength. When our people thrive, our patients benefit. Diversity is not just principle for us, we see it as a strategic driver that strengthens our teams and the care we deliver.
I see this first-hand when visiting our clinics around the world and speaking with women at Diaverum whose careers span from nursing roles to directors and beyond. Seeing that progression across our organisation is a source of deep pride - because when the women who sustain our care are empowered to grow, the strength of our care grows with them.
Patricia Fors
VP HR Europe & Latam and Global HR Operations
