Endometriosis, pelvic pain clinic to open at Kardinia Health

A new Geelong service will seek to reduce diagnostic delays and provide care for women facing debilitating pain.

Kardinia Health chief executive Michelle Heagney.

An endometriosis and pelvic pain clinic will be set up to help women in Geelong.

The service will be established at Kardinia Health in Belmont and is expected to open soon.

Endometriosis affects at least one in nine Australian women and can have an extensive, devastating impact on daily lives, Assistant Health Minister Ged Kearney said.

Those suffering wait an average of seven years before diagnosis, she said.

The 2022-23 federal budget committed funding to support the establishment of targeted endometriosis and pelvic pain GP clinics in primary care settings.

Twenty clinics around Australia will provide expert, multidisciplinary services and care.

Ms Kearney said the clinics would each receive more than $700,000 over four years, to support hiring specialised staff, including nurse practitioners and allied health professionals, investment in equipment or fit-outs such as pelvic physiotherapy areas, as well as resources, training and development.

Working in existing general practice, the clinics would strengthen what was often the first point of contact in the health system to reduce diagnostic delays and promote early access to multidisciplinary intervention, care and treatment, she said.

Western Victoria Primary Health Network chief executive Rowena Clift said it was expected these clinics would enable more appropriate and timelier endometriosis care and management, leading to improved diagnosis time frames and appropriate pain management for impacted patients.

Corangamite MP Libby Coker, who spoke about the issue in Parliament this week, said: “This clinic will give women with endometriosis from across our region the care they need to go back to school, rejoin the workforce, and lead fulfilling lives.”

Kardinia Health chief executive Michelle Heagney said its team of GPs, physiotherapists, dietitians and psychologists were looking forward to working with other clinicians in the Geelong region to make a difference to patient outcomes.

“Our goal is to provide more care to more women when they need it; providing a comprehensive, accessible and innovative service to improve their lives” Ms Heagney said.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), endometriosis is a chronic disease associated with severe pain during periods, sexual intercourse, bowel movements and/or urination, chronic pelvic pain, abdominal bloating, nausea and fatigue.

It is also sometimes linked to depression, anxiety, and infertility.

Originally published as Endometriosis, pelvic pain clinic to open at Kardinia Health