Dear AFMW and Friends,
I am to thrilled see this RACGP Women’s Health site eventuate. As an RACGP Expert Committee for Quality Care (QC) member since 2014, I have been on the steering committee writing the guidelines with the external stakeholders in seven of the listed guidelines – which includes being co-chair of the Women’s Health chapter of the Red Book with Prof Danielle Mazza. It is through this QC committee that I have advocated for a Women’s Health site.
You’ll see that the first and only endorsed guideline on Female Genital Cosmetic Surgery(FGCS) is on the list too. I authored this in 2015 and it is being reviewed this year but features the work of WHV & Labia Library from the early days of Labia Library when Jess Malone, the then policy advisor wrote the white paper in 2013 on cosmetic genital surgery, for which she interviewed me and which I reviewed. Back then, we talked about addressing the misrepresentation by setting up an online labia library! With minimal funding, the Labia Library became a reality which has become a global resource for women, girls and health professionals.
Guidelines provide best practice graded recommendations and as important as they are, often sit archived away under the ‘Guidelines’ banner. Finding what you need when required, should not involve trawling through a series of alphabetical lists.
Thankfully, this now exists so health professionals and GPs can find what they’re looking for, when supporting women, without unnecessary delays.
It brings me great joy to see that advocacy for a ‘gender specific’ health site which provides evidence-based guidelines on common women’s health conditions, has resulted in the establishment of this easy to access site.
Big thanks to Professor Mark Morgan chair of QC for listening and to the RACGP team that works behind the scenes to make this happen.
Please share with colleagues and refer them to RACGP Women’s Health resources for guidance.
More will be added over time, for more conditions such as Endometriosis, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), however, endorsements take time.
Kindest regards,
Magdalena Simonis
President AFMW
RACGP Quality Care Committee
Associate Professor Magdalena Simonis AM is the Immediate Past President of the AFMW (2020-2023), former President of VMWS (2013 & 2017-2020) and current AFMW National Coordinator (2024-2026). She is a full time clinician who also holds positions on several not for profit organisations, driven by her passion for bridging gaps across the health sector. She is a leading women’s health expert, keynote speaker, climate change and gender equity advocate and government advisor. Magda is member of The Australian Health Team contributing monthly articles.
Magdalena was awarded a lifetime membership of the RACGP for her contributions which include past chair of Women in General Practice, longstanding contribution to the RACGP Expert Committee Quality Care, the RACGP eHealth Expert Committee. She is regularly invited to comment on primary care research though mainstream and medical media and contributes articles on various health issues through newsGP and other publications.
Magdalena has represented the RACGP at senate enquiries and has worked on several National Health Framework reviews. She is author of the RACGP Guide on Female Genital Cosmetic Surgery and co-reviewer of the RACGP Red Book Women’s Health Chapter, and reviewer of the RACGP White book
Both an RACGP examiner and University examiner, she undertakes general practice research and is a GP Educator with the Safer Families Centre of Research Excellence, which develops education tools to assist the primary care sector identify, respond to and manage family violence . Roles outside of RACGP include the Strategy and Policy Committee for Breast Cancer Network Australia, Board Director of the Melbourne University Teaching Health Clinics and the elected GP representative to the AMA Federal Council. In 2022. she was award the AMA (Vic) Patrick Pritzwald-Steggman Award 2022, which celebrates a doctor who has made an exceptional contribution to the wellbeing of their colleagues and the community and was listed as Women’s Agenda 2022 finalist for Emerging Leader in Health.
Magdalena has presented at the United Nations as part of the Australian Assembly and was appointed the Australian representative to the World Health Organisation, World Assembly on COVID 19, by the Medical Women’s International Association (MWIA) in 2021. In 2023, A/Professor Simonis was included on the King’s COVID-19 Champion’s list and was also awarded a Member (AM) in the General Division for significant service to medicine through a range of roles and to women’s health.
