It’s pretty rare to stand up at an MPI and hear from members of parliament that are really on a unity ticket about an issue as important as gender inequities in health, and I thank the member for Mayo for bringing this to the attention of the House. I’m old enough to remember when anything related to women’s health was considered women’s problems. That covered the full gamut. It was talked about in hushed tones or not talked about at all. I’m really grateful for all the contributions from the previous speakers. It’s a really important topic.

Before coming to this place, my life’s work was as a nurse, a midwife and a public health researcher. I’ve seen firsthand the gaps and inequalities faced by women in accessing health care, in research, in funding and in diagnoses up close, day by day. These gaps are even more pronounced in regional, rural and remote Australia. These gaps and disadvantages affect women throughout their lives.

Let’s start in early childhood, where girls are much less likely to be diagnosed with conditions like ADHD than boys in childhood, with diagnoses generally coming much later in life. Moving into the teenage years, women face an average delay of between five and 6½ years in getting diagnosed with endometriosis after first experiencing symptoms. At the other end of life, symptoms of heart attacks are less likely to be recognised in women than men. In the same way these gaps follow the women throughout their lives, they also exist throughout health care. Right from the research that does not include women or doesn’t focus enough on women’s health issues to the funding of services and procedures to diagnoses, these gaps are there every step of the way.

A recent Senate inquiry into menopause and perimenopause made 25 recommendations for reform but, at multiple points, the final report called out the lack of research, data and information about menopause, something that happens to half the population. This lack of research, this silence, contributes to stigma that stops women from seeking or receiving the health care they need and often means women are prescribed drugs that are not specifically designed for them. Women are 75 per cent more likely to experience adverse reactions to prescription drugs compared to men. Looking at this issue, recently published research from the Australian National University found women are not just smaller versions of men but need specifically designed medication.

We cannot talk about the gaps in funding and services for women’s health without talking about reproductive health care. I am happy to co-chair with the member for Canberra and the member for Wide Bay the Parliamentary Friends of Maternal Health. We have heard loud and clear from women, from consumers, from midwives, around the significant gaps in the way that women access childbirth services and postnatal services, and we have heard loud and clear the evidence based approach of continuity of midwifery care that can address those issues. It is so thrilling to me as a midwife to know about the work the government has done in this space around endorsed midwives and I thank them for that—there is more to go!

A recent study by Women’s Health Victoria showed the postcode lottery of sexual and reproductive health access across the state and it showed service deserts, where 67 per cent of local government areas did not have any listed surgical abortion providers, 45 per cent did not have any listed medical abortion providers and 60 per cent did not have any listed medication abortion dispensing pharmacies. In mid 2023, just 17 per cent of GPs were providing medication abortion services. Could you imagine a men’s health issue where more than 80 per cent of GPs did not offer treatment? It simply would not happen.

This is a short speech, so I cannot cover the further complications and disadvantages for Indigenous Australian women, culturally and linguistically diverse women, and LGBT IQ women and people. There are extra challenges for those communities in accessing health care which must also be addressed. Before finishing, I do want to make it clear that gender norms that harm women in health care can also harm men and boys. Men are less likely to seek health care and are more likely to use drugs and alcohol in harmful ways. Indeed, my postdoctoral research shows there are significant gaps in care for men in the transition to fatherhood.

It is fair to say that in all these issues the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, Ged Kearney, is giving it a fair crack when it comes to addressing the issues for women’s health. I acknowledge all the work the assistant minister has done and is doing in achieving for women and girls of Australia, and I hope that as a parliament we follow her lead in this space for a long time to come.