Driving better sexual and reproductive health outcomes for women through primary care

We innovate strategies to ensure the Australian primary care workforce adequately addresses women's sexual and reproductive health needs, including trialling alternative service delivery methods to enhance accessibility, particularly in rural and regional areas.

Understanding the needs and preferences of women is important when co-designing interventions that can help women achieve their individual reproductive goals.

Health data sets are useful in gaining insights into the state of women's sexual and reproductive health in Australia and identifying gaps in health care provision.

As Australia edges closer to completely eliminating cervical cancer, the challenge is to ensure that the benefits are shared by all. This world‑first milestone is the result of years of collaboration between University of Sydney researchers and their local and global partners.

Nearly 20% of women reported experiencing severe pain during IUD insertion, according to data from the 2024 Australian National Women’s Health Survey, with psychological and experiential factors playing a key role in how the procedure was perceived.

When a visionary study of Australian women’s health was launched in the 1990s, high-quality data was scarce and crippling conditions such as endometriosis under-recognised. Thirty years on, and the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health has grown into the largest study of its kind in Australia.

A national study published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology has revealed that while nearly half of Australian women experience minimal discomfort during intrauterine device (IUD) insertion, one in five report "severe" pain.

The RACGP has hit back at moves by the New South Wales Government to allow pharmacists to prescribe contraceptives to women over the age of 18 without seeing a GP. Under a $4.5 million state investment, women will be able to ‘access the pill quickly through their eligible local pharmacy, without needing to book a GP appointment’.

Researchers have identified key gaps in the RACGP’s latest Red Book, warning that Australia’s primary care guidelines for preconception care overlook several important elements that are recognised internationally.