health
LGBTIQ Aussies suffer higher rates of domestic violence, study finds
LGBTIQ adults in Victoria experience domestic and family violence at more than double the rate of non-LGBTIQ adults, according to a major new survey. The Victorian Agency for Health Information conducted the survey of over 34,000 LGBTIQ adults about their health and wellbeing. The study shines a light on issues contributing to health inequalities LGBTIQ …
Court approves trans teen’s treatment after parental dispute
A 16-year-old transgender girl whose mother opposed her transition can access gender-affirming hormone treatment after a win in the Family Court of Australia. The girl’s father had consented to the treatment, but her mother refused, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Family Court Justice Garry Watts last week granted access to oestrogen treatment for the girl, …
QC offers new sexual health clinics in Brisbane and Hervey Bay
The Queensland Council for LGBTI Health (QC) has begun new weekend sexual health clinics as Queenslanders are urged to keep up their health checks during COVID-19. QC holds its Clinic 30 Testing Point in Brisbane every second Tuesday, and that service has now resumed and is taking bookings. Lance Schema, State Manager of QC’s Client …
‘Stand Bi Us’ conference unites Australia’s bisexual communities
A group of organisations for bisexual people across Australia and New Zealand are putting on their first conference, Stand Bi Us. The conference includes thirty-seven free events, both online and in-person, during a week-long celebration for Bi+ Visibility Day. That day is September 23 each year. The Stand Bi Us Conference aims to “celebrate community, …
COVID deniers and other trolls attack Magda Szubanski ad
The Victorian Government’s star-studded campaign urging Victorians to abide by lockdown rules features a Magda Szubanski ad in which she appears as her character Sharon Strzelecki from Kath and Kim. Sadly, COVID deniers, QAnon trolls and other morons quickly emerged from under their rocks to attack Magda over the ads. “It’s not the lockdown that’s …
Queensland conversion therapy ban slammed as ‘ineffective’
LGBTIQ advocates have panned Queensland’s laws criminalising harmful LGBTIQ “conversion therapy” for not going far enough. Last week, the Queensland government passed a bill banning health service providers from “attempting to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.” Providers found using the outlawed “conversion” methods would face penalties of up to 18 …
Queensland passes ban on ‘conversion therapy’
The Queensland government has passed legislation banning health providers from using so-called “conversion therapy” on LGBTIQ Queenslanders. Deputy Premier and Health Minister Steven Miles said the legislation, passed on Thursday afternoon, was the first of its kind in Australia targeting the “harmful, deceptive and unethical” practices. “No treatment or practice can change a person’s sexual …
ComePrEPd: Taking PrEP to prevent HIV gives Tarriaki peace of mind
PrEP is a prevention strategy where HIV negative people take one oral pill a day to prevent HIV infection. ComePrEPd is a community-driven HIV prevention campaign by the Queensland Council for LGBTI Health to increase awareness of PrEP. To find out more, visit the website here. Read on to hear from Indigenous Sistergirl Tarriaki about …
LGBTIQ seniors hit hard by Victorian aged care lockdowns
Victorian LGBTIQ advocates are extremely concerned for the welfare of older LGBTI Victorians in aged care or self-isolation during the state’s COVID-19 lockdown. Numbers of Victorians in aged care with COVID-19 reached 1186 on Tuesday (August 4), with outbreaks in at least 100 facilities. Switchboard Victoria provide peer support to LGBTI people including seniors through …
ComePrEPd: Greg wants to Close The Gap on HIV with PrEP
PrEP is a prevention strategy where HIV negative people take one oral pill a day to prevent HIV infection. ComePrEPd is a community-driven HIV prevention campaign by the Queensland Council for LGBTI Health to increase awareness of PrEP. To find out more, visit the ComePrEPd website here.Read on to hear Greg (pictured above) explain what …