menshealthaustralia.net

 Victorian Men's health & wellbeing strategy background paper released

The development of the Men's health and wellbeing strategy background paper has been the initial step in the development of the first Victorian Men’s health and wellbeing strategy.

Community feedback on the background paper is now being sought to assist in the development of the final strategy. Submissions close Monday 31 May 2010.

The background paper provides the first comprehensive picture of the health and wellbeing of Victorian men. It sets out a framework and principles for responding to health issues common to men and proposes a range of priority areas for action.

The approach outlined recognises the importance of government and service providers understanding and responding to gender differences in health behaviours as well as the need to support men in improving their own health.

Please go to http://www.health.vic.gov.au/mhws/background.htm for more information.

 National Male Health Policy Released

May 6th - Prime Minister Rudd has today released the long awaited National Male Health Policy. It seems to address nearly all of the concerns raised during the extensive consultation process, and despite limited accompanying funding, has the potential to make a substantial contribution to improving male health and well-being. The Policy and accompanying documents can be downloaded from:

http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/national+mens+health-1

 Men’s Health Around the World: a review of policy and progress across 11 countries

In a new joint publication reviewing progress across the world on men’s health, the EMHF has called on the EU to back more research and show greater sensitivity to men's health at policy level.

Men’s Health Around the World: a review of policy and progress across 11 countries, which was to be launched at the World Congress on Men's Health in Vienna this month, was coordinated by EMHF director Erick Savoye and David Wilkins, the policy officer of EMHF member, the Men’s Health Forum England and Wales (MHF). The publication looks at the state of men’s health and the varying government responses in Australia, Canada, Denmark, England & Wales, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Scotland, Switzerland and the USA. It begins with an introduction by David Wilkins and concludes with an overview of men’s health in Europe by Erick Savoye.

 NSW Men's Health Policy Announced

The first men's health policy in a decade is due to be released tomorrow and is expected to herald a significant cultural shift away from blaming men for their poor health to recognising social factors and the need for "male friendly" services. John Macdonald, of the University of Western Sydney, said social determinants such as whether a man is retired, has a long commute to work or has children play a huge role in men's health but have previously been ignored in health policy. Professor Macdonald, who will address the National Men's Health Gathering starting in Newcastle today, said the new policy was the first of its kind in Australia. He said the idea that men generally had poorer health than women because of lax attitudes was more myth than reality.

 Federal Minister for Men's Health Appointed

Alan Howe (Herald Sun, Melbourne) exclusively revealed this morning that, in a first for an Australian government, Northern Territory MP Warren Snowdon will be appointed Federal Minister for Men's Health. Snowdon will be asked to deal with the findings collected by the national men's health ambassadors as they convened meetings across the country this year to discuss men's health and to peer into the psychology of the shortest-lived of the species.

 AMHF submission to the National Men's Health Policy

The AMHF has provided a submission to the National men's Health Policy (download it here). The AMHF is pleased that Australia will have a men's health policy but strongly exhorts the government to create some structure which will be able to draw together the needs of boys and men across Australia, reflecting their diversity and their varying life contexts, whether Aboriginal men struggling against marginalisation, boys in school, men in the home, recently arrived immigrant men, men in the workplace or in retirement. This is what we understand when the DoHA discussion document speaks of the "social determinants of men's health". The importance of such a coordinating mechanism cannot be overemphasised. The lack of any such structure or clear accountability for creating and monitoring successful outcomes in improving men's health, is the most important reason why so many good men's health initiatives have not been sustained in recent years.