Women’s Health Matters has released a major report aiming to make the health and wellbeing of women in the ACT visible through high quality data.

In an online survey of over 1600 people, Women’s Health Matters gathered information about people’s experiences of general health and mental health, health information and health services, sexual and reproductive health, pregnancy and parenting, discrimination, safety and violence.

Lauren Anthes, CEO of Women’s Health Matters, says surveys like this are important in identifying the needs of women.

“This major survey will help us to see where the health system could work better to address the needs of different groups of people, and where we need to remove barriers,” said Ms Anthes.

The survey found that while many people have good access to GPs, and benefit from high quality consultations, issues of cost and appointment availability make it hard for some people to get basic healthcare. The survey also found that many people experience poor access to mental health services, specialists, and healthcare at short notice and after hours, and many do not have access to satisfactory services for common reproductive health conditions.

“Datasets on women’s health in the ACT have previously been quite small, so we are impressed by the willingness of so many people in the community to tell us about their experiences,” said Ms Anthes.

On Wednesday 26 July, Women’s Health Matters hosted a launch event for the survey with stakeholders, government representatives and community members, including Minister for Health, Rachel Stephen-Smith, and a representative of the Snow Foundation.

Women’s Health Matters will use the survey results to continue to advocate for women’s health needs in the ACT and collaborate with relevant stakeholders and the community to do so.

This project was funded through a grant from The Snow Foundation and core funding from ACT Health.

The survey report can be found here.