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Health ministers dither while doctors die

Editor: Dr Ruth ArmstrongAuthor: Kerry Breenon: July 19, 2017In: health regulation, health workforce, mental health, occupational health, public health

A tweet. That’s how I found out about the death of a former colleague from suicide recently. I hadn’t seen him for years, but remembered him as a competent, approachable registrar – enthusiastic and b... Read more

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When second best isn’t good enough: Australia’s health system ranks highly on all but equity

Editor: Dr Ruth ArmstrongAuthor: Lesley Russellon: July 18, 2017In: health inequalities, Healthcare and health reform, public health, social determinants of health

You’ve probably heard the news in the past few days that a report from the US-based Commonwealth Fund has ranked Australia’s overall health system performance as much better than that of the US, and s... Read more

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Nuclear Weapons banned at last. Now let’s put Australia on the right side of history

Editor: Dr Ruth ArmstrongAuthor: Margaret Beavison: July 17, 2017In: global health, human rights, public health

Just over a week ago, at a United Nations meeting in New York, more than 120 countries approved a treaty to ban nuclear weapons. The treaty, after it is signed in a few months, will outlaw the develop... Read more

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Should nurses participate in prison executions? A lesson from history

Editor: Dr Ruth ArmstrongAuthor: Linda Shieldson: July 17, 2017In: health ethics, human rights, nurses and nursing, public health

The post below and its embedded short film contain confronting material about the participation of nurses in tens of thousands of state sanctioned murders in Nazi era Europe. It would be easy to look... Read more

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Listen to the voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women at #LBQWHC17

Editor: Melissa SweetAuthor: Amy Coopeson: July 16, 2017In: #LBQWHC17, Indigenous health, lesbian gay bisexual transgender issues, Social and emotional wellbeing, women's health

At the recent Lesbian, Bisexual and Queer Women’s Health Conference, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women shared their stories, poems, songs and art, as well as many reflections that are instru... Read more

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Commissioning is about change, not competition

Editor: Dr Ruth ArmstrongAuthor: Jay Rebbeck, Scott White and Catherine Turneron: July 14, 2017In: health financing and costs, Healthcare and health reform, primary health care, rural and remote health

A few weeks ago we posted a summary at Croakey of the results of a qualitative study that canvassed the perceptions of senior staff, board members, and community advisory group members from six Primar... Read more

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Could a People’s Food Policy plug Australia’s “policy vacuum”?

Editor: Dr Ruth ArmstrongAuthor: Dr Ruth Armstrongon: July 14, 2017In: food and nutrition, health inequalities, obesity, public health, social determinants of health

As Britain prepares for Brexit to disrupt many of its established trade networks, a coalition of more than 80 English food and farming organisations has launched A People’s Food Policy. The group desc... Read more

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Counting the toll of toxic public debate: research shows surge in abuse of lesbian, bisexual and queer women

Editor: Melissa SweetAuthor: Amy Coopeson: July 14, 2017In: #LBQWHC17, discrimination, lesbian gay bisexual transgender issues, mental health, social determinants of health, tobacco control, women's health

New research showing lesbian, bisexual and queer women are experiencing increasing rates of abuse and harrassment as well as other important health concerns are “a call to arms” on LBQ wom... Read more

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LBQ Women’s Health Conference 2017: Shining a light on lesbian, bisexual and queer women’s health

Editor: Melissa SweetAuthor: Karen Priceon: July 12, 2017In: #LBQWHC17, evidence-based issues, health and medical research, lesbian gay bisexual transgender issues, mental health, social determinants of health, tobacco control

More than 320 delegates will gather in Sydney over the next few days to discuss the diverse health issues for lesbian, bisexual and queer women, including women with diverse gender experiences and int... Read more

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Planetary health is a social justice issue

Editor: Dr Ruth ArmstrongAuthor: Catriona Bonfigliolion: July 11, 2017In: #ClimateHealthStrategy, climate change, global health, health inequalities, public health

Planetary health is defined as “the health of human civilisation and the state of the natural systems on which it depends,” and the news is not good. Recent contributions to our knowledge on this topi... Read more