Media release: 20 February 2025
In 2024 The Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health (MCWH) announced an important evolution of their national Health in My Language program, which pivoted from a COVID-19 vaccine bilingual health educator program to a sexual and reproductive health program for the benefit of migrant and refugee communities across Australia.
Today the Commonwealth Government announced a renewed investment of $5.4 million to sustain this vital program until 2026.
“Our government is pleased to continue supporting the program as part of our solid commitment to health equity for women and girls, and people of all genders from diverse backgrounds,” said Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care Ged Kearney MP.
Health in My Language began in 2022 as a vital national response program to address barriers to vaccine literacy and uptake during the COVID-19 pandemic. In partnership with organisations in each state and territory, MCWH recruited and trained a workforce of 44 BHEs for deployment across Australia.
From February 2024, Health in My Language performed a remarkable pivot to evolve into a national sexual and reproductive health program. Renewed funding for this 2024 phase of the program delivers on the 2023 Senate Committee recommendation made in the ‘Ending postcode lottery’ in response to the Inquiry into Universal Access to Reproductive Healthcare, where the Australian Government identified the Health in My Language program as an important national platform for advancing sexual and reproductive health equity.
“Our ability to respond dynamically to the government’s urgent health care priorities is due to our trained and highly skilled workforce of bilingual health educators, coupled with our unique feminist-led model for health education and our expertise delivering sexual and reproductive health information to migrant and refugee communities over the past 46 years” says Dr Regina Torres-Quiazon, Director of Programs at the Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health.
“We know that migrant and refugee women face intersecting structural, systemic and personal barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health services, whether they have recently arrived or whether they have been here for a longer period, and even if they can speak English very well.
Our culturally tailored, peer to peer approach is based on respecting the knowledge that people already have about their bodies and themselves. Our Health in My Language program facilitates further learning so that migrant women can make informed decisions about their own health and wellbeing on important topics such as understanding menopause, safer sex, contraception choices and pregnancy choices,” she concludes.
The announcement of renewed investment for the Health in My Language program took place in Brisbane on 19 February 2025, led by The Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health and the program’s Queensland based partner True Relationships and Reproductive Health.
“The extension of this program will build on that success, ensuring women and girls can continue to make informed decisions around their health,” said Assistant Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Julian Hill MP.
The delivery of the Health in My Language bilingual health education program commenced nationally in November 2024 and will continue until 2026.
For more information, please contact: Kim Grosser, Strategic Communications Manager, Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health at kimg@mcwh.com.au.