Accelerating progress in women's health outcomes: Monash Women’s Health Alliance
This year, the United Nations theme for International Women’s Day is Count Her In: Invest in Women. Accelerate Progress. Investing in the physical and mental health of all women, girls and gender diverse people is critical to the aim of accelerating progress in gender equality.
To better elevate and mobilise our expertise in women’s health, Monash Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences recently spearheaded the formation of the Monash Women’s Health Alliance (MWHA), a network of over 185 research leaders, over 50 specialist research groups, data sets, registries, biobanks and clinical trials footprint. The alliance was brought together to lead a step change in prevention, public health and clinical practice, for women, girls and gender diverse people of all ages, in Melbourne’s south and east, across regional Victoria and beyond.
Centred on improving women’s health outcomes across the lifespan, the MWHA addresses both current and emerging women’s health needs, with a focus on workplace policy and practice, education and workforce development and translational research. Key MWHA partners include Monash University and a network of members spanning Victoria’s health care system including leaders in women’s health research, all dedicated to effecting positive health outcomes across women’s health care, research, prevention, services and advocacy.
The ‘front door’ to evidence-based information and care
A central point for collaboration, Monash University plays a leadership role and works with Alliance partners, external stakeholders and network members to provide a ‘front door’ to government, collaborators and the community seeking access to internationally-recognised expertise in women’s health and a centre for solutions to emerging and existing women’s health issues. The MWHA brings together a statewide network that collaborates with national and global networks while connecting with the local community.
Impacting women’s health challenges through the lifespan
At the forefront of women’s health and research, the MWHA collaborates to embed research and education into our network of clinical partners and the community with a focus on the development of innovative treatments and therapies through optimising models of care, impacting and improving the lives of women.
Working across three key streams - policy and practice, education and workforce development, and translational research - the MWHA are working towards improving lives across priority areas for women including:
- Menstrual health and disorders of menstruation, including endometriosis, premenstrual dysphoria, PCOS and the many causes of amenorrhea
- Sexual and reproductive health
- Mental health and wellbeing
- Cancers
- Cardiovascular health
- Autoimmune disease
- Pain management
- Body image and eating disorders
- Fertility and pregnancy
- Dementia and cognitive decline
- Healthy ageing and prevention of chronic disease
- Menopause - management, impact on work arrangements, interventions
- Health in the workplace
- Workforce - educating and training for health and care professionals
Professor the Hon. Jill Hennessy, Chair of the Monash Women’s Health Alliance and Vice Chancellor’s Professorial Fellow, said that the Alliance’s vision was to ensure that all women are able to live their best lives through access to the latest evidence-based health information and care. “Women’s health needs have been treated as secondary in health systems, research and education for far too long,” she said. “On International Women's Day, we’re proud to share that the Alliance is accelerating progress in women’s health by channelling and leveraging the breadth and depth of our expertise across basic science, public health, and clinical and implementation science, and establishing a governance structure and engagement model that can support collaboration.”
To express interest in the Monash Women’s Health Alliance, contact Professor Christina Mitchell, Executive Dean of Monash Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences.
Email: christina.mitchell@monash.edu
Find out more about our women’s health research capabilities.
About Monash University
Monash University is Australia’s largest university with more than 80,000 students. In the 60 years since its foundation, it has developed a reputation for world-leading high-impact research, quality teaching, and inspiring innovation.
With four campuses in Australia and a presence in Malaysia, China, India, Indonesia and Italy, it is one of the most internationalised Australian universities.
As a leading international medical research university with the largest medical faculty in Australia and integration with leading Australian teaching hospitals, we consistently rank in the top 50 universities worldwide for clinical, pre-clinical and health sciences.
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