Pelvic pain conditions are among the most under-recognised and under-treated health issues facing women in the ACT. Our submission to the ACT Legislative Assembly Inquiry into Endometriosis and Other Pelvic Pain Conditions brings together two Surveys of Women’s Health in the ACT, conducted in 2023 and 2025, and over 870 qualitative responses to document the real scale of the problem and what needs to change.
The findings are significant. Around a third of respondents to our 2025 survey had experienced endometriosis, adenomyosis, PCOS or persistent pelvic pain, equating to an estimated 66,360 people in the ACT. The average wait for an endometriosis diagnosis is 6.5 to 8 years. Respondents consulted an average of five different doctors before a management plan was established. Over 230 respondents described being dismissed, ignored or not taken seriously by medical professionals. And many told us they had no option but to travel to Sydney or Melbourne for care that should be available here in the national capital.
This submission is intended to inform the Committee’s recommendations and push for the systemic change these findings demand. Our 26 recommendations call for the development of an integrated, publicly funded pelvic health system in the ACT, one that covers the full continuum of care, is free or low cost at the point of access, and ensures that no one in the ACT has to wait years, travel interstate, or pay out of pocket for care they are entitled to receive here. We invite you to read the full submission and consider what the ACT can do to better support the tens of thousands of people living with these conditions in our community.