Category: Governance
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An inside look at WHO’s annual Executive Board Meeting
Dr Fiona Robards As part of my sabbatical in Geneva, I attended the 156th session of the WHO Executive Board from 3 to 11 February 2025. The WHO Executive Board is a high-level body that implements decisions about WHO policies, planning, and funding, and advises the World Health Assembly. It…
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Food Ministers urged to prioritise health over industry interests
Damian Maganja, Veronica Le Nevez, Andrea Schmidtke and Sally Witchalls Walk into any supermarket and you will be accosted by shelf upon shelf of unhealthy foods, from soft drinks that contain up to 14 teaspoons of sugar to whole aisles of confectionery, chips and biscuits. Even foods we might think…
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There’s more to PHAA membership than tax deductions
Penelope Smith The value of a Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA) membership, particularly if you are a student like me, is significant; but for a very long time, my engagement with the Association was little to none. Despite being a member since 2017, it’s only within the last year…
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Parliament overhauls national tobacco law
Malcolm Baalman, Public Health Association of Australia Arguably the most important item of public health legislation to be addressed by our national Parliament in over a decade was finally approved by the Senate last week. The Public Health (Tobacco and Other Products) Bill 2023 is the result of a 4-year…
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Ways to answer common questions about the Voice to Parliament proposal
PHAA’s Administration and Memberships Officer, Amber Rowe, and CEO, Adj Prof Terry Slevin Introduction The Voice Referendum is a compulsory vote on 14 October. All registered voters in Australia need to turn up. As a result, and as the date nears, more people are turning their mind to the…
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Timor-Leste’s Institute of Public Health builds links with Australian partners
Malcolm Baalman, PHAA Senior Policy and Advocacy Advisor This week the PHAA national office hosted Dr Merita Monteiro, foundation President of the newly created Timor-Leste (East Timor) National Institute of Public Health (Prezidente do Conselho Diretivo do Instituto Nacional de Saúde Pública de Timor-Leste, INSP-TL). (Photo from left: PHAA Senior…
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Health sector backs ‘Yes’ vote
Malcolm Baalman, PHAA Senior Policy and Advocacy Advisor Health sector organisations have decisively taken positions backing changes to the Australian Constitution at the referendum on 14 October to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and create an advisory Voice institution to represent them to government. PHAA, medical associations including…
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Ending the political influence of unhealthy industries
By PHAA intern Ellie Hickey Andrew Wilkie, Independent member for Clark (formerly known as Denison), has been elected to federal parliament five consecutive times. Known for his role as a whistle-blower on the 2003 Iraq war, Mr Wilkie is widely respected across the political spectrum for his commitment to personal…
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Reform needed to limit unhealthy influence around elections, PHAA tells inquiry
BF, PHAA Intern In a perfect world, public policy decisions should be made in the public good, and in the interests of public health. But the reality is that such policies often go against the interests of powerful corporations, leaving affected businesses to make use of any tools at their…
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PHAA’s submission marks 30 years of advocating for a CDC
PHAA Policy and Advocacy Team After more than 30 years advocating for the establishment of an Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC), the PHAA team is celebrating the lodging of our submission today to the Australian Government addressing the questions outlined in the Role and Functions of an Australian Centre…
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An Australian CDC is almost 40 years in the making
PHAA It’s been 35 years since the call for an Australian Centre for Disease Control began. How did it start? What have been the hurdles along the way? How much longer will it take? Many might think the push for an Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC) only began following…
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PHAA’s process for preparing a CDC consultation submission
By PHAA CEO Terry Slevin and Vice-President (Policy) Professor Caroline Miller PHAA has been invited to provided a submission to the consultation process for the establishment of the Australian Centre for Disease Control. We have been actively engaged in this process and are providing assistance to the Australian Government’s Department…
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‘Get runs on the board early’: An overview of the new CDC consultation paper
Terry Slevin, PHAA CEO The Centre for Disease Control (CDC) consultation paper, Role and Functions of an Australian Centre for Disease Control: Prevention-Promotion-Protection, was released last week by the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. We’ve had a chance for a first pass review. The document reveals…
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Three current or former PHAA Branch Presidents reflect on successes and challenges
Introduction by PHAA National Office Are you a public health professional looking to take on a leadership role at an organisation committed to equity, prevention, and evidence? Or are you interested to learn about the policy and advocacy activities our Branch Presidents are involved in week-by-week? Hear from three former…
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Leveraging COVID-19 disruptions to reorient governmental systems toward health equity
Michelle Morgan, PHAA member, Healthy Communities Officer at the Tasmanian Department of Health, and PhD candidate at the University of Tasmania Over the past few years, we have all experienced major disruption from the COVID-19 pandemic. But our experiences have not been equal. The pandemic has exposed and worsened…
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Burning questions at ‘fireside chat’: three state public health chiefs provide insights
Melanie Parker, PHAA Three of Australia’s public health chiefs explored the past, present and future of public health in Australia during this year’s Population Health Congress 2022 in Adelaide. New South Wales Chief Health Officers Dr Kerry Chant PSM, Victorian Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton, and Tasmanian Director of…
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Next steps to the design principles for an Australian Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
PHAA CEO, Adj Prof Terry Slevin The establishment of the Australian Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ACDPC) is the most important change in public health architecture in Australia for a generation. Our CDPC Corner has so far primarily focused on what the agency should include and prioritise. Here we’ll…
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Rethinking traditional structures: a proposal for an Australian Distributed Network for Disease Prevention and Control
Jane Heller and Richard Heller We support many of the ideas that others have posted on the CDPC Corner about the development of an Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC), a pre-election commitment made by the Australian Labor Party. Our contribution builds on these previous submissions by calling for this…
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Environmental health essential in an Australian CDC: Sophie Dwyer PSM
Sophie Dwyer One of the positive aspects of the conversation that the PHAA has been having around the formation of a Centre for Disease Control (CDC) has been the recognition that a CDC needs to have a broader scope than solely that of communicable disease control. The purpose of this…
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Q&A: Indigenous Peoples’ Inclusion in Food Governance
This piece was first published by the Sydney Environment Institute, University of Sydney. Read the original article. For NAIDOC Week, Dr Mark Lock speaks to Dr Belinda Reeve about championing health equity for First Nations Australians and their meaningful inclusion in all dimensions of food governance. By Dr Mark J Lock, University of Technology Sydney & Deakin…
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Why Australia needs a National Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (NCDPC)
OzSAGE Independent Expert Panel OzSAGE has convened an independent expert panel to produce a report on an Australian Centre for Disease Prevention and Control by July 1 2022. The panel has expertise in public and occupational health and prevention, and includes past chief health officers and others with substantial depth of…
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Questions of scope and governance: A northern Queensland perspective on the proposed Centre for Disease Control
Stephanie Topp1, Alexandra Edelman1, Sue Devine1, Tammy Allen1, Paul Horwood1, Julie Mudd2, Emma McBryde3, Jeff Warner1 College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville and Cairns, Queensland. College of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville and Cairns, Queensland. Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine,…
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Action needed on prevention and collaboration implementation research
Professor Luke Wolfenden, The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre The Prevention Centre’s Leadership Executive and several key partners have reflected on the importance of a coordinated, collaborative national approach to prevention practice, research and policy. Our 17 co-authors have published a call to action in the Australian and New Zealand Journal…
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Strengthening Australia’s chemical regulation: an opportunity for the new government
Peter W. Tait, PHAA member In the past five years Australia’s agricultural, veterinary (agvet) and industrial chemical regulation has undergone a series of reviews and reforms. The purpose of these has been to reduce the regulatory burden on manufacturers, importers, and industry while retaining protection of the environment and human…
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Pandemic-era Health Minister Greg Hunt retires
Malcolm Baalman, PHAA As happens at every federal election, several long-serving Members of Parliament have retired. Two in particular have influenced public health in Australia. Today we profile the Hon. Greg Hunt, former Member for Flinders, and Minister for Health 2016-2022. Elected to the House of Representatives in 2001, Hunt…
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Australia fails adaption to climate change
Honorary Associate Professor Liz Hanna Australia’s abject failure to mitigate or adapt to climate change was a key topic at last week’s Global Public Health Week. Hosted by the World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA) from 4 – 8 April 2022, the Global Public Health Week initiative was a…
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Discerning discussion at ‘Design principles of an Australian CDC’ webinar
Melanie Parker – PHAA With a 50/50 chance of an Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC) being formed after the federal election on 21 May, discussing the scope and structure of this centre was key to PHAA’s webinar on 11 April 2022. Presenters are leading figures at their respective…
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“Uncomfortable, important and compelling”: Food Sovereignty presentations at Food Futures 2022
Christina Pollard, Melanie Parker, and Food Futures Conference Advisory Committee Over 170 delegates attended the Food Futures Conference 2022, held Wednesday 16 to Thursday 17 March. Expert speakers presented on a range of topics, on the Conference theme of transforming food systems for the planetary and public good. The third…
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Under-resourced and undermined: as floods hit south-west Sydney, our research shows councils aren’t prepared
Nicky Morrison, Western Sydney University and Patrick Harris, UNSW Sydney Thousands of people in south-western Sydney have been ordered to evacuate as extreme rain pummels the region and floodwaters rise rapidly. The downpour is expected to continue for days. This region, particularly Western Sydney, is no stranger to climate-related disasters.…
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South Australian Public Health Consortium State Election Forum: A summary
Melanie Parker, Mary Brushe and Professor Jacquie Bowden – PHAA Almost 100 people joined the South Australian Public Health Consortium‘s Virtual Forum on 23 February to hear political parties’ public health priorities ahead of the upcoming state election. The Consortium comprises the SA branch of Public Health Association of Australia,…