The NEPHN – Population Health meeting held in June 2025 focused on Bridging the Gap: Boosting Awareness of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services in the North East, highlighting strategies to improve awareness of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and addressing barriers to access across the region.
The session was hosted by NEPHU Director, Dr Annaliese van Diemen, who drew on her clinical journey as a GP to emphasise the systemic lack of specialised training in women’s health among healthcare professionals, particularly in gynaecological care. She highlighted recent expansions of SRH services in Victoria, including 20 state-funded SRH hubs, federal funding for endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics, and partner clinics with Melbourne Sexual Health Centre. Annaliese called for consumer-centred approaches to maximise the impact of new services.
Mila Waise, Women’s Health, Community and Public Health Division Manager, from the Department of Health spoke to the unique health conditions and systemic disparities faced by women, including the gender pain gap, medical bias and misogyny, and complex service navigation. It was highlighted that women carry a higher lifetime disease burden than men, are twice as likely to delay care due to cost, spend 25% more of their lives in chronic illness, and face higher out-of-pocket healthcare costs. The presentation also shared early insights from the Victorian Women’s Pain Inquiry (2024), which received over 13,000 responses and highlighted high rates of chronic pain, significant impacts on mental health and wellbeing, and experiences of being ignored or gaslit by healthcare professionals. The inquiry has made 27 recommendations across seven improvement areas, which can be found in the report which has since been published in November 2025: Inquiry into Women’s Pain
An overview of Women’s Health Clinics and SRH hubs across Victoria was also provided, noting that nine clinics are currently operating, with five more launching by the end of 2025. Services include endometriosis and pelvic pain care, migraines, incontinence, improved access to contraception (including LARC), and medical and surgical abortion. Innovative models, such as the Nina mobile bus, the Virtual Women’s Health Clinic, and the upcoming Aboriginal Women’s Health Clinic were highlighted as ways to address barriers related to access, privacy, transport, and cultural safety. It was also noted that the 20 operational SRH hubs have seen over 8,000 women in nine months, with a high proportion of concession card holders and women from regional Victoria.
Medical Practice Manager, Laura Colliver and Medical Practice Nurse Lead, Gulcin Erduran, presented on DPV Health’s Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health Hubs in Broadmeadows and Mill Park. They outlined the hubs’ dedicated, nurse-led and multidisciplinary model, offering free or low-cost SRH services, including contraception, antenatal care, medical terminations of pregnancy, STI testing, vaccinations, and referrals. The presentation highlighted DPV Health’s focus on supporting priority populations, including young people, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, LGBTQIA+ individuals, CALD communities, and people with disabilities.
Lily Grace, Sexual and Reproductive Health Nurse, also presented on the SRH services offered at Each. This includes the Virtual Women’s Health Clinic, which provides low or no-cost SRH care via phone and video consultations, and the Endometriosis and Pelvic Pain Clinic, offering multidisciplinary, self-referral care focused on timely diagnosis and holistic, non-surgical support.
The session concluded with a panel discussion featuring Megan Elias from Women’s Health In the North, Claire Butselaar from Women’s Health East, and Arundhathi Lekshmi from Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health. The discussion explored how to ensure SRH services are safe, timely, affordable, confidential, and high-quality, particularly for migrant and refugee women. Key themes included the importance of language support, health literacy, affordability, workforce capability, community-led service design, and ongoing evaluation and monitoring to improve access, reduce stigma, and strengthen system-wide quality improvement.
