Sometimes it feels like we have a plan for everything. And for someone like me who likes to be organised a plan is always a great place to start and important reference document.
Every four years Council is required to develop a Council Plan. This plan has five key themes, Community, Liveability, Sustainability, Accessibility and Leadership.
This Council Plan also includes a Health and Wellbeing Plan. From this each year Council develops an Annual Action Plan outlining how we are going to deliver on the Council Plan.
There are nine priorities included in the Health Wellbeing plan.
One priority highlighted was improving sexual and reproductive health.
Engagement responses on this priority highlighted that some people in our community did not have a good understanding of services available for support safe sexual practices and reproductive health.
To support this priority, the Annual Action Plan includes the following action aligned with Liveability: "In partnership with our health and wellbeing partners, advocate for the provision of locally based sexual health and reproductive health services and outreach programs".
We are fortunate in this region to have the organisation Women's Health Grampians who strive to see improvements in women's equality, health and wellbeing in the Grampians region and further afield.
I was however disappointed, when reading the Department of Health – Victorian Women's Sexual and Reproductive Health Plan 2022-30, to learn of the planned location of Women's Sexual and Reproductive Health Hubs.
New hubs where established this year in Warrnambool, Shepparton and Gippsland.
What about Horsham and the north west of the state?
To access these hubs women from the Wimmera and Mallee would need to travel to Bendigo, Ballarat or Warrnambool.
On behalf of women who choose to make western Victoria their home, advocacy work for women's health in our region needs to continue to ensure we have equal access and do not need to travel to access these important health services.
