Women and girls make up more than half of our population, yet their health has been overlooked and underdiagnosed for too long. Women often experience barriers when trying to access the services they need to support their physical and mental health.
Gender equality contributes to better health. Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege. Every girl and woman deserves access to care regardless of their background or circumstances. We are dedicated to improving women's healthcare in Victoria by setting a new standard for comprehensive, accessible, inclusive, high-quality services.
To bridge the gap in women's healthcare, the Department of Health is leading the delivery of the $153.9 million package to change the way women's health issues are treated. This will expand upon the Victorian Government's current investment in women's health promotion services, access to information, sexual and reproductive health services, primary care sentinel practices, public hospital specialist clinics, and initiatives aimed at healthcare recruitment and training.
A Victorian Women's Health Advisory Council will advise on the rollout of this investment in women's health to give independent expert advice on the delivery of the program.
The delivery of the package will include the following initiatives:
Women's Health Clinics
Establishment of 20 new women's health clinics over 4 years, and a dedicated Aboriginal-led women's clinic, to overcome some of the barriers to women's medical treatment our community faces.
The clinics aim to gradually provide a 'one-stop-shop'' experience while enabling women to receive services or advice on issues from contraception to menopause and pelvic pain. The clinics will facilitate access to interdisciplinary care for women, girls, and gender diverse people.
The first 5 clinics are commencing operation in 2024 at:
- Barwon Health – Geelong
- Grampians Health – Ballarat/Stawell/Horsham
- Peninsula Health – Frankston
- Northern Health – Epping
- Royal Women's Hospital – Parkville
The second 5 clinics will commence operation in 2025 at:
- Central Highlands Rural Health
- Eastern Health
- Goulburn Valley Health
- Monash Health
- Western Health
Mobile women's health clinic
Establish a mobile women's health clinic in regional and remote Victoria to improve women's access to health services.
The Department of Health has partnered with BreastScreen Victoria to deliver a community outreach service for women's health. The mobile women's health clinic will be available for girls, women and gender diverse people living in regional and rural Victoria.
The 12-month pilot will be delivered via a purposefully refurbished BreastScreen Victoria van named . The service will provide sexual and reproductive health services closer to home including:
- contraception
- sexual health testing and treatment
- referral for medical and surgical termination of pregnancy
- support with women’s healthcare advice and system navigation
The mobile women's health clinic builds upon BreastScreen Victoria's existing mobile breast screening program.
Laparoscopies
An additional 10,800 laparoscopies to help diagnose and treat debilitating endometriosis, which affects one in every 9 girls and women.
Sexual and reproductive hubs and primary care sentinel practices
Establish 9 additional sexual and reproductive health , bringing the total number of hubs to 20. The expansion of the hubs will improve access to care and provide services such as:
- long-acting contraception
- sexually transmissible infection prevention, testing, and treatment
- medical termination of pregnancy, and support referral for surgical termination.
We are expanding and upskilling primary care sentinel practice services to support sexual health prevention, testing, treatment, and care.
Grants to women's health NGOs
$1.8 million over 4 years is allocated to 13 organisations to establish mental, physical and wellbeing support groups for women to address specific health issues, including chronic disease and menopause. For a list of participating organisations, see Women's Health and wellbeing support groups and programs.
Women's Health Research Institute
Support the creation of a women's health research institute to identify and treat common health issues (e.g. cardiovascular) and diseases specific to women (e.g. endometriosis).
The Institute will establish links with research institutes nationally and internationally, the key health services, researchers and clinicians across metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria and drive clinical trials in women’s health issues.
We aim to work with key partners and invest in research support services to improve women's health outcomes and address sex and gender differences in healthcare.
Inquiry into women's pain
Establish an inquiry into women's pain to examine systemic issues and find solutions that will be the basis for improving patient care.
It will enable women and those with living, and lived experience, to inform the design and delivery of initiatives and service improvement relating to pain management services across the state.
Research support services
Funding data collection of sex and gender demographics and research projects that explore differences in access to services for diagnostics, treatment, and management of different health conditions. Research findings will inform public health policy and clinical practice.
Women's health specialist scholarships
Provide scholarships for extra specialists in women's health.
Reviewed 21 October 2024