Women’s Health Matters is committed to reconciliation and acknowledges the First Australians whose cultures are among the oldest living cultures in human history, as the traditional custodians of this continent. We also recognise the history of dispossession experienced by the First Australians and the impact this has and continues to have on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. We recognise the Ngunnawal People as the traditional custodians of the land on which we live and work, and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. We recognise the strength of Aboriginal women and their continuing connection and contribution to this land, these waters, and our communities. May we walk gently and treat the earth and each other with care and respect.
Earlier this year Women’s Health Matters undertook a survey about ACT women’s experiences of seeking help following a sexual assault. This was done to complement our research in 2016 on women’s experiences of seeking help for domestic violence, and also to inform the ACT Government’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response program which was formed in early this year.
The aim of our research was to understand the needs of ACT women who have been sexually assaulted and the way they approach seeking help in the ACT – and an important part this was to gain an understanding of women’s views on what worked and what didn’t, and their suggestions for how the response system could be improved to better support women seeking supports for mental and physical health, community support, and police and legal services.
We would like to acknowledge our Health Promotion Officer Pip Courtney-Bailey for leading the survey, Health Promotion Officer Julia Tran for the analysis and the Office for Family Safety in assisting us recently finalise the report.
Click here to read our submission including the findings from the survey of ACT women’s experiences of seeking help after a sexual assault.
