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National Women's Health

Development of a New National Women’s Health Policy Guidance Consultation Questions

The following guidance questions have been structured around the five suggested principles to underpin the development of the policy. These questions should not be regarded as prescriptive, but are offered to allow flexibility for organisations in their submissions.

PDF printable version of Development of a New National Women’s Health Policy Guidance Consultation Questions (PDF 26 KB)

Submissions may be delivered to:

By Post:
National Women’s Health Policy
MDP 13
GPO Box 9848
CANBERRA ACT 2601

or by email: National.Women's.Health.Policy@health.gov.au

Gender equity

How can the health system be more responsive to the specific needs of women?

In what way can the Policy actively promote participation of women in health decision making and management?

Health equity between women

How can the health system be more responsive to those groups of women most at risk?

• How can access to services be improved?
• Should the policy promote specialist or outreach services for particular groups of disadvantaged women?

In what ways can the policy help to promote health equity between women?

• Should the policy aim to influence sectors outside health, eg education, employment, rural infrastructure? How?

Are there specific health workforce issues that are impacting on certain groups of women? How should the policy address these?

How can better access to health services be achieved for women most at risk?

How can participation of Indigenous and culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) women in health decision making and management be improved?

What about the needs of particular groups of women such as those with a disability, lesbian women, homeless or isolated women? How should the national policy improve the health of these women?

A Focus on prevention

Which women in our community are most at risk of poor health? Should the policy identify priority groups for action?

How can the policy help to improve the health and wellbeing of those women most at risk?

To what extent can risky behaviours such as excessive alcohol consumption tobacco smoking and obesity be reduced in groups of women most at risk? Are there strategies or responses that are effective and able to be promoted nationally?

Are there specific conditions or diseases significantly impacting on women that are not reflected in the Governments current National Health Priority Areas, and/or emerging areas for concern? How could these be addressed in a national policy?

How should the policy address violence against women?

What about the needs of women in relation to psychosocial health? Should the policy aim to improve women’s psychosocial health and wellbeing?

How should the sexual and reproductive health needs of women be addressed in a national policy?

What needs to be done to improve coordination of care for women in the health system?
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A strong and emerging evidence base

Are there gaps in our knowledge, including the need for further research and data collection that will help to assist in the development of a robust policy and improve women’s health outcomes in the longer term?

Is there a need for more gender focussed health research? In what ways? How can a national policy address this need?

Would the use of gender analysis tools in the development of mainstream policies and strategies ensure health services are gender specific and meet the needs of CALD and disadvantaged women?

A lifecourse approach

How can awareness be raised of the importance of early intervention across the lifecourse?

Are women at particular age groups more at risk than others eg

• Should maternal and early childhood issues be considered in the policy, especially in relation to the impacts on health in later health from things such as low birth weight?
• Are there specific health issues for young women, eg associated with high risk behaviours?
• How can the policy improve the health and wellbeing of women around 25 – 40 years in relation to emerging health issues such as overweight and obesity and life stage factors related to employment and family responsibilities?
• Are the needs of women in mid-life years adequately addressed in relation to sexual and reproductive health and prevention of chronic disease?
• How can we encourage the health system to be more responsive to the needs of elderly women?

Other issues

The previous National Women’s Health policy identified seven priority issues for women and took a social view of health. Are there aspects of the previous policy that are still current and should be considered in the new policy? What are the lessons of the previous policy that are relevant to the new?

What other issues are relevant to your organisation or constituencies that you think should be considered in development of the policy?