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Striving for optimal sexual and 
reproductive wellbeing for 
rural women Presenter: Shannon Hill, Women’s Health Grampians 
A project of the rural services 
of the Women’s Health 
Association of Victoria
population health data 
rarely represents 
facts about access to 
family planning services 
how can we measure 
rural women’s access to 
family planning services? 
issues remain 
anecdotal evidence suggests 
rural women experience 
difficulty accessing sexual 
and reproductive support 
‘invisible’ and are not 
catered for in planning or 
resource allocation
3.2.3 ms shannon hill
the key issues impacting rural women’s access to: 
condoms 
privacy 
48% 
availability 
25% 
travel 
18% 
contraception 
availability 
37% 
travel 
23% 
cost 
16% 
emergency contraception 
availability 
31% 
privacy 
31% 
travel 
17% 
pregnancy counselling 
availability 
35% 
privacy 
20% 
travel 
19% 
abortion 
travel 
28% 
availability 
27% 
privacy 
20% 
96% r7Se2efer%vrr ioecefd srt eaosr pseoe nrnvoditce eansltw sin ac oyMns esAildbVeoAruIeLrdAn eBP LR(E5I V0inA% Ca) Y ot irtm oo eubltey o amfn at oinswnsuener( 46%)
the key themes and recommended action areas: 
information 
privacy 
availability 
client 
choice 
local 
services 
service 
providers 
community 
awareness 
out of 
hours 
referral 
pathways 
confidential 
practice 
female 
doctors
Women's Health Grampians 
(03) 5322 4100 
www.whg.org.au 
Gippsland Women's Health Service 
(03) 5143 1600 
www.gwhealth.asn.au 
Women's Health Loddon Mallee 
(03) 5443 0233 
www.whlm.org.au 
Women's Health Goulburn North East 
(03) 5722 3009 
www.whealth.com.au 
Women's Health and Wellbeing Barwon South West 
(03) 5564 5786 
www.womenshealthbsw.org.au 
Striving for 
optimal sexual and 
reproductive wellbeing 
for rural women

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3.2.3 ms shannon hill

  • 1. Striving for optimal sexual and reproductive wellbeing for rural women Presenter: Shannon Hill, Women’s Health Grampians A project of the rural services of the Women’s Health Association of Victoria
  • 2. population health data rarely represents facts about access to family planning services how can we measure rural women’s access to family planning services? issues remain anecdotal evidence suggests rural women experience difficulty accessing sexual and reproductive support ‘invisible’ and are not catered for in planning or resource allocation
  • 4. the key issues impacting rural women’s access to: condoms privacy 48% availability 25% travel 18% contraception availability 37% travel 23% cost 16% emergency contraception availability 31% privacy 31% travel 17% pregnancy counselling availability 35% privacy 20% travel 19% abortion travel 28% availability 27% privacy 20% 96% r7Se2efer%vrr ioecefd srt eaosr pseoe nrnvoditce eansltw sin ac oyMns esAildbVeoAruIeLrdAn eBP LR(E5I V0inA% Ca) Y ot irtm oo eubltey o amfn at oinswnsuener( 46%)
  • 5. the key themes and recommended action areas: information privacy availability client choice local services service providers community awareness out of hours referral pathways confidential practice female doctors
  • 6. Women's Health Grampians (03) 5322 4100 www.whg.org.au Gippsland Women's Health Service (03) 5143 1600 www.gwhealth.asn.au Women's Health Loddon Mallee (03) 5443 0233 www.whlm.org.au Women's Health Goulburn North East (03) 5722 3009 www.whealth.com.au Women's Health and Wellbeing Barwon South West (03) 5564 5786 www.womenshealthbsw.org.au Striving for optimal sexual and reproductive wellbeing for rural women

Editor's Notes

  1. Today I wanted to share the results of the Victorian Rural Women’s Access Family Planning Survey The project has been a collaboration between the 5 rural Women’s Health Services of the Women’s Health Association of Victoria including: Women’s Health Grampians, Gippsland Women’s Health Service, Women’s Health Loddon Mallee, Women’s Health Goulburn North East and Women’s Health and Wellbeing Barwon South West This project represents our commitment to the women of rural Victoria, striving for optimal sexual and reproductive wellbeing The data contained within this report acknowledges the reality for women accessing family planning services in regional, rural and remote areas, and, provides vital evidence needed to improve access to timely, accurate, confidential and respectful services. The data was gathered by asking Health and Community Service Providers across rural Victoria to complete an online survey, sharing what they know about women’s access to contraception, pregnancy counselling, abortion and the professional development needs of service providers. This collection of data was the first of its kind in Victoria and provides us with baseline information about the barriers rural women face when accessing family planning services, and also identifies potential strategies to overcome these barriers. We would like to acknowledge Women’s Health Victoria, The Royal Women’s Hospital and Springtech Services for their expert advice and support throughout the process And also the dedicated Service Providers who took the time to participate in the survey
  2. Over 20+ years of existence, women’s health services have received a constant flow of anecdotal information about the barriers and lack of access to family planning services in rural Victoria. Despite the constant stream of evidence collected and passed on to successive governments the situation for rural women has not improved. In addition, population health data rarely captures facts about women’s access to family planning services which makes it difficult to assess the situation, to plan for improvement or measure change. To give you some examples while abortion is legal in Victoria, access to abortion services is often limited or non-existent in rural and regional areas, meaning women may need to travel over 200kms to Melbourne to access these services Our teenage birth rates are consistently higher than urban and metro areas And even though access to STI screening may be limited, we have pockets where Chlamydia rates are extremely high In essence, we have heard and understood the stories of women in our regions but have been frustrated by the lack of data and a distinct feeling that this cycle will continue until we can clearly demonstrate the need to improve rural women’s access to family planning services By gathering and publishing this data we have started capturing the attention of local governments, primary care partnerships, hospitals , community health centres and Medicare Local At a time where these organisations are drafting their strategic plans for the years ahead, I’m pleased to report that this data is helping us open doors and start conversations about planning for improvement in response to these issues.
  3. So the first goal of the project was to gather the baseline data. We knew it was an ambitious task! But I’m pleased to report that the women’s health services were determined not to let the enormity of the task become yet another barrier Coming together in partnership, we were able to share our resources, knowledge and ultimately the cost of such a large project Being the first data collection of this type, we invested time to get design of the survey right, and enlisted the help of a contractor to build the online questionnaire, invitation and registration process, and compile the data. The CEOs of the 5 women’s health services sent invitations out their network of stakeholders to participate in the survey We had 225 responses in total, which included representatives from community health, local government, school nursing, family support services and general practice. The coloured shading on this map shows we had responses spanning across All 5 of the rural Victorian Department of Health Regions covering all 48 Local Government Areas within those regions This level of participations was better than we had hoped and I believe is a demonstration of the strength of our connections across our regions, and also a display of the passion and commitment of the service providers who saw this as an opportunity to improve the situation Collecting the data in a uniform way across the state has also allowed us to compare our results. It was interesting to find that there was little variance between the results for each of the different regions. This left us with 1 clear message, rural women, no matter where they are located, face a number of barriers when trying to access family planning services.
  4. The second goal of the project was to identify those barriers. The survey confirmed the key issues are: PRIVACY AVAILABILITY and TRAVEL   Privacy: including concerns about a lack of anonymity when requesting services, or that those requests might not be treated confidentially   72% of respondents considered privacy to be an issue in their local area   this was rated as the key issue for buying condoms comments captured in the survey remind us that purchasing condoms or emergency contraception in a small town can mean being served by someone you know, or in the case of young people, someone who knows your parents   the Availability of services: including access to female GPs, limited access to local services, waiting times and opening hours of clinics and/or pharmacies availability was rated as a key issue for access to contraception, emergency contraception and pregnancy counselling comments in the survey described challenges for accessing these important services in a timely manner where GPs, the local chemist or supermarket may not be open on certain days, or where they were available, it was not possible to get a appointment with a female doctor, out of hours, or to try and fit and appointment into a lunch break where clinics may tend to run late   Travel: including difficulties with distance & and the lack of either public or private transport options This was rated as the key issue for women accessing abortion Where access to surgical abortion was not available locally 96% of respondents referred to services in Melbourne (50%) or out of town (46%) A quote from the survey described the fact that women are ‘shipped off’ to Melbourne for pregnancy counselling and abortion services as ‘archaic’
  5. The third goal of the project was to identify strategies or ideas about good practice to improve the situation   the theme of Information was consistently raised as an issue throughout the survey this includes the knowledge and education available to both the community and service providers   This ranges from people and/or service providers not knowing what services are available, or how to access them   To the challenges for service providers in keeping knowledge up to date, or having the time or staff cover available to access professional development opportunities   Overall the results and strategies indicate a strong need to advocate for:   a continued culture and practice of confidentiality to alleviate privacy concerns   local services considering options that will improve availability   clear referral pathways with an emphasis on client choice, and   improving access to information, knowledge and education to service providers and the community
  6. By gathering and publishing this data we have captured the attention of local governments, primary care partnerships, hospitals, community health centres and medicare local   This data is helping us open doors and start conversations about planning for improvement that will support the family planning needs of rural women   As a women’ health services working in a collaborative partnership, we will share ideas, develop initiatives, and build the evidence of successful strategies, specifically for a rural setting   Using the strength of this statewide piece of work, we have been able engage in strategic partnerships with The Royal Women’s Hospital and Family Planning Victoria   We are really pleased with the outcome of this work so far, and we’re feeling optimistic, but know there is much work in continuing to strive for optimal sexual and reproductive wellbeing for rural women. To anyone who is looking for a strategy to improve access to services in a rural setting, we would recommend this approach. If you would like more information please feel welcome to contact any of the 5 women’s health services involved in this project Thanks for listening