Sexual and Reproductive Health Project

A new research report ‘Mapping access to sexual and reproductive health services in regional Victoria,’ will be launched on Thursday 24 October. We are excited to be sharing this new, groundbreaking research that shines a light on the barriers faced by women and girls in the Barwon South West region when accessing the sexual and reproductive health services they need. 

What is sexual and reproductive health?

Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) encompasses the complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing of all aspects related to the reproductive system.  It spans a broad spectrum of healthcare needs across the whole of a woman’s life, and is influenced by biological, social, and cultural factors.  Achieving and maintaining sexual health relies on women having the right to make decisions concerning their own bodies, and the ability to find and access the right services.

Barriers to SRH service access in rural and regional areas

Women in the rural and regional communities in our region are strong and resilient.  Time and again they prove themselves stoic in the face of the multitude of challenges that come with rural living.  Our lofty goal, at Women’s Health and Wellbeing Barwon South West, is to improve the lives of women across our region.  We aim to see women and girls healthy, safe and equal.  We pride ourselves on being strong advocates for women and to do this we need reliable data that evidences what change is needed, and why. That is why this report is so important.

Women should not have to accept inequity in health services or health outcomes simply because of where they live. Regional and rural women face very specific barriers when accessing SRH services. It’s critical we understand these unique barriers as a first step in overcoming them. The topic of sexual and reproductive health service access in regional and rural areas quite simply has not had the attention it deserves, but we are changing that.  

A combination of distance, lack of services, lack of publicly listed services and factors such as affordability and cultural safety all play a part in whether a woman can access the services that she needs, and when she needs them.  And in small towns, like so many in our region, concerns around confidentiality can also be a barrier to service access.  Delayed access to these crucial health services can of course have a detrimental impact on women’s health and wellbeing.

Collaborating for change

The ‘Mapping’ report is the culmination of a project undertaken as a partnership between Deakin Rural Health, the Centre for Australian Research into Access and Women’s Health and Wellbeing Barwon South West.  The value of this collaboration can’t be overstated - by working with others who contribute the right expertise, we can take great strides forward for women. At Women's Health and Wellbeing Barwon Southwest we’re so pleased to contribute by sharing our data, knowledge and community connection. Through our connection to women and girls in the community, we were able to help shape the research project and help the researchers to understand the story behind the data.

The project

This project was carried out in two parts. The first part was to understand the physical location of SRH services. The Deakin Rural Health team gathered the location of all sexual and reproductive health services in the Barwon South West. Then, using technology from the Centre for Australian Research into Access, mapped those against every single address point across the region. This enabled calculation of the time someone would have to travel to reach SRH services.

But we know that time travelled is only one part of the picture. So, the second part of the project was to develop and document an understanding of the barriers and facilitators to access, that is, those factors that either support or impede a woman accessing a service. This includes whether information about the service was publicly available, whether the service was affordable, culturally safe and able to be accessed in a timely manner.

Stand-out findings

The report highlights challenges associated with the long distances that some women are forced to travel to access services. This is particularly true in the Colac-Otway and Glenelg Shires where, for example, a woman may have to travel up to 133 minutes one-way, to access an ultrasound to find how many weeks pregnant she is.  For a working individual this results in significant lost time from work, potential lost income, additional costs in terms of fuel/travel, and all of this can impede or delay a woman from accessing the care she needs in a timely manner.

The research also shows that there is a significant lack of publicly available data on the location of SRH services. Many GP clinics and health providers don’t publicly state all the SRH services they offer. For a woman seeking information, or needing to access these services, it's so important that this information is publicly available and easy to find. 

Evidence is a powerful tool

This research gives us an incredible amount of valuable data that we will use to advocate for change in our region. It establishes the evidence we need to take to decision makers as we work to improve the experience of rural and regional women when accessing SRH services. 

Women of our region deserve equal health outcomes and equal access to essential health services, no matter where they live. We will continue to build on this work, but the report represents a critical step in ensuring that women and girls across our region have timely access to the care they need - and contributing to this evidence base is something we are very proud of. 

Access the full and summary report for clicking the links below.

Mapping SRH service access - full report

Mapping SRH service access - summary report digital

Mapping SRH service access - summary report in accessible word