The Turnbull Government will create the first National Action Plan for Endometriosis, providing much needed support for women who face this often misunderstood medical condition.
The Plan will seek to improve the treatment, understanding and awareness of endometriosis, which affects around one in ten Australian women.
It will be developed in collaboration with the Australian Coalition for Endometriosis, and members of the Parliamentary Friends for Endometriosis Awareness.
The Plan will focus on how to improve the lives of women who face this terrible condition.
Diagnosis of the condition currently takes on average around eight to nine years, placing a significant toll on individuals, families and the community.
This condition should have been better acknowledged and acted upon long ago but today we are taking action so the struggle that women face will no longer be silent or their battles private.
We will work with the medical community and key stakeholders to look into what gaps might be present in training, support and care.
Importantly medical research will be critical to uncovering new options for diagnosis, treatment, care and understanding of endometriosis.
We will therefore issue a targeted call for endometriosis research under the Medical Research Future Fund.
The Turnbull Government will also provide funding of $160,000, through the National Health and Medical Research Council, for Professor Grant Montgomery to use genomics to investigate better treatments for women with endometriosis.
The Jean Hailes Foundation, supported by Turnbull Government funding, will also make endometriosis a key feature of next year’s Women’s Health Week, to raise awareness of the condition.
All participants of the Australian Coalition for Endometriosis should be congratulated for the advocacy and voice they give to the thousands of women who suffer from endometriosis.
We look forward to developing this new national approach with all involved in the battle against endometriosis.