Everyone has the right to understand their body, make informed choices about their health, relationships, sexuality, and have the agency to make decisions that are right for them.
This belief sits at the heart of everything we do at the Centre for Excellence in Rural Sexual Health (CERSH). We also recognise some of our communities experience greater barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health information, support and services. Specifically, we know we can do more for our culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities.
Recently, I had the opportunity to work with Multicultural Health and Support Service (MHSS) and the Health System Navigators (HSNs) from Primary Care Connect in Shepparton. Together, we worked to create safe spaces where people could ask questions, learn more about sexual and reproductive health, and feel comfortable having conversations that are often seen as difficult or uncomfortable.
One thing that really stood out to me was the want and desire of people to learn about their health. Often, assumptions are made that these communities see sexual and reproductive health as too taboo or stigmatised to discuss, or they simply aren’t interested. However, that wasn’t my experience. The challenge is many people have never had the opportunity to have these conversations in places where they feel safe, with people they trust, or in a way that feels culturally appropriate. Some community members also shared they didn’t always have the words in their first language to talk about sexual or reproductive health, while others worried about privacy or what their family might think if they brought resources home.
These conversations reminded me health promotion is about much more than handing out information. It’s about building trust, listening to communities and creating opportunities for people to ask questions without judgement.
To support this, I partnered with the HSNs to deliver a train-the-trainer program. Instead of leading every conversation, I focused on building the confidence and knowledge of trusted community members so they could have these discussions within their own communities.
The HSNs helped shape the program, making sure it covered topics that mattered most to their communities, including consent, sexually transmissible infections (STIs), STI testing, contraception, pornography and image-based abuse. They took part in education sessions, practised facilitating conversations and received ongoing support from CERSH.
The impact was immediate. Just two weeks after the training, the HSNs delivered a sexual and reproductive health session to 40 Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme workers. A week later, they ran another session for around 40 members of the Papua New Guinean and Vanuatuan community. Separate sessions for men and women helped create a respectful and culturally appropriate space where people felt comfortable asking questions. For me, this project showed how powerful community-led education can be. By working alongside trusted community members, we weren’t just sharing information, we were helping create conversations that might not have happened otherwise. It’s a reminder that when people feel safe, supported and heard, they’re better able to make informed decisions about their health and wellbeing.
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