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Act to Prevent Men’s Violence Against Women Launch

Women’s Health West, along with plenty of help from our partners, launched a resource about the prevention of violence against women at the Newport Substation in June.

‘Act To Prevent Men’s Violence Against Women: a Guide for Community Action’ aims to support community groups in Melbourne’s west to take action to prevent men’s violence against women.

The guide details practical things you can do every day to prevent men’s violence against women. It includes important information to consider before you take action, as well as links to further resources. 

Thanks to our project working group HealthWest, Hobsons Bay City Council, Moonee Valley City Council, cohealth, Western Bulldogs, City of Melbourne, Inner North West PCP, Djerriwarrh Health Services (Health Hospital Community), City of Melton, Victoria University, Melbourne Australia.

And our speakers Tarang Chawla, Nelly Thomas, Working Together with Men, Women Making it Happen, Janet Galpin of Boon Wurrung Foundation, and Susan Timmins and Shelley Tait of Women’s Health West.

Check out the videos below of the event. With biggest thanks to NIASHA for performing at the launch and allowing us to use her music and Teagan Glenane for videography.

Women’s Health West’s year to date

Women’s Health West have compiled some key statistics and information about our year to date.

The flyer provides a snapshot of the demand on our services, and some of the challenges and successes we’ve had so far this financial year. The information covers the period 1 July 2016 – 30 April 2017.

These include:

  • We received 9,297 police family violence referrals.
  • We supported 1,073 women at court, and provided 243 children with counselling support.
  • We have experienced a significant decrease in ongoing recurrent family violence funding relative to non-recurrent funding in recent years, which impacts significantly on our ability to offer staff permanent contracts and sustainably plan for growth.

The flyer can be downloaded here.

Help us understand attitudes towards sexual and reproductive health

Women of the west: we need your voice. We want to hear from women aged 16 and above who live, work, study or play in the west. We want you to have your say in shaping the future of sexual and reproductive health services in Melbourne’s west. (more…)

Action for Equity strategy launched

In late April, the second iteration of our regional sexual and reproductive health strategy for Melbourne’s west, Action for Equity, was launched by the Minister for Health, Jill Hennessy MP.

People, and in particular women, in the western region of Melbourne have poorer sexual and reproductive health outcomes when compared to other regions in Victoria. This is particularly the case in relation to sexually transmitted infections, teenage fertility, and cervical screening rates. Despite this, and our rapid population growth out west, our region still lacks a dedicated sexual health clinical service.

This newly-launched strategy is designed to improve sexual and reproductive health outcomes for communities in the west in a coordinated way, to increase impact throughout the region. It was developed by the Action for Equity partnership, led by WHW, and other key experts. The other 15 partners cover a wide range of health and community services – including community health, and local and state government, among others. Action for Equity has also been influenced by current state and federal policies, including Victoria’s first ever sexual and reproductive health strategy, launched by Minister Hennessy last year.

Action for Equity’s first strategy ran from 2013-2017. It was visionary and ambitious. It was instrumental in supporting partners to align their efforts to improve sexual and reproductive health in Melbourne’s west under a common agenda. And it enabled them to identify shared measures of success, drawing on the diverse expertise of a range of sectors.

The new strategy, Action for Equity 2018-2022, is as bold and impressive as the first, and we are looking forward to it having an even greater impact on our community across the next four years. Melbourne’s west is one of Victoria’s most vibrant and diverse regions, and our goal is to achieve the highest standard of sexual and reproductive health for everyone in our community.

The Action for Equity strategy can be downloaded here.

Women’s Health West on film

Earlier this year we embarked on a mission to shine a light on the work we do here at Women’s Health West. We are often so busy there isn’t much time to reflect or step back, but that was just what we did in the process of putting together these two short films.

In the first film we’ve captured some of the amazing feedback we have had from clients and program participants over the years. Filming these statements was powerful; many of them evoke hard times and the hope that follows.

The second film reveals the diversity of work that we do here at Women’s Health West. From direct services to health promotion, the video showcases all of the many facets of the organisation. It offers a sneak peek inside our Barkly Street offices, and some of our own staff make an appearance!

Many thanks for Big Review TV for their assistance and direction in making these films.