HUGH WHITFIELD, HOST: Dan, do men put health into the too hard basket too often?
DAN REPACHOLI MP, SPECIAL ENVOY FOR MEN'S HEALTH: G'day Hugh, let's get excited. It is Men's Health Week and we need to make sure that blokes are out there putting their health front and centre and sometimes we do put it into the too hard basket and that's where we just need to get a bit better and that's why we're all here out there talking this week about men's health and making sure that blokes don't actually put it off.
The number one is to go get a blood test and really make sure that you are looking after yourself because that blood test is just the same as servicing your car. We can tell so much from a blood test. So please, to all the blokes out there, book in with your GP and done.
WHITFIELD: What health risks are they risking by putting off a visit to the GP? Because there's a lot of Australian blokes who think they know better or it's too hard or they don't have time or they need to look after the kids or something like that?
REPACHOLI: The main reason why we've got to get out there and have a check of us here as blokes is we put it really far down the list is our own health. So we need to make sure that we're doing the best with our health to make sure that we're around for our loved ones, around for our partners, around for our kids, around for our families and the communities as well. People want to see you around and we need to make sure that we're getting on top of our health because if a little thing that can be checked out today or tomorrow, we might wait a year or two. It could be too late to actually check that in. And so unfortunately we lose 4,000 blokes every year. We lose to prostate cancer and that's one of the most treatable cancers we get as blokes and something that we can get on top of if we go and have that test early.
WHITFIELD: Okay, your day job is as a federal MP for the Hunter, but the government has made you the special envoy for men's health. Why do we need a job like this?
REPACHOLI: We need a job like this because the simple statistics are is that men top the charts in all of these areas. We just don't put a massive priority on our health. And that's what we need to make sure that we continually do and focus on that. Because, unfortunately, in the city areas, we're seeing men die just over four years younger than our female friends. But if you go into rural and regional Australia that's up to 13 years younger and that's a very scary stat and that just shows the difference that we have as blokes with our health literacy compared to females and we just need to get a little bit better. If we can get 10% more Aussie blokes every year reaching out to their GP and getting a blood test done, we will literally save thousands and thousands of lives in this country.
WHITFIELD: Dan, just very briefly, tell us about some of the conversations you've had with blokes in this job. How hard is it to get guys to think about their own health?
REPACHOLI: It is very hard to get blokes to think about their own health, and I fully understand that as well. I was one of those blokes. I was embarrassed to go see a GP because I didn't want the GP to tell me what was wrong with me. But I eventually did it and it was the best thing I did. And so I urge all the blokes out there to reach out to your GP and have that conversation. The biggest step forward to doing it is actually jumping online or making the phone call to book that appointment. You don't have to go this week. It might be six weeks' time when you do go, but if you jump on this week and book in for that appointment, that is a major step forward. And a big thing we hear, Hugh, a lot of is we're seeing a lot of blokes, they're getting their bowel test kits sent to them in the mail, and they're just chucking them straight in the bin or putting them in the drawer and saying, I'll get to that one day. Bowel cancer is a leading form of cancer in this country and we need to make sure that we're getting those tests done because that's the only time you can send back a bit of crap back to the government. So make sure you're doing that, everyone. Actually have that thing. Do it because government appreciates that you're taking your health and taking it seriously.
WHITFIELD: Alright, it's a great conversation starter and a really important message. Dan Repacholi hopefully everyone follows through with it. Thanks for your time this afternoon.