Date
Cost
Available to
Practice Nurses
General Practitioners
Allied Health Practitioners
Continuing Professional Development
2 RACGP CPD hours (Educational Activity). All participants will receive a certificate of attendance for CPD purposes.
These sessions will provide an overview of the relevant legal changes, an opportunity to hear from sex workers with diverse identities and experiences, ask questions and participate in group discussions, access ad hoc resources and network.
The Sex Work Decriminalisation Act 2022 (VIC) is an essential step in ensuring better health and human rights outcomes for sex workers. However, despite the law now recognizing sex work as legitimate work, the long history of stigma, discrimination and criminalisation of sex work is still a barrier to accessing healthcare including primary health, mental health and AoD services.
Also relevant to all healthcare workers, the Victorian Equal Opportunity Act was amended to ensure sex workers cannot be discriminated against on the basis of their ‘profession, trade or occupation,’ including in healthcare settings. A number of public health measures and reporting requirements have also changed to align the sex industry with standard business laws in the state.
This education session will support mental health and AoD professionals in understanding their responsibilities under the new legislation and equip them with the knowledge and confidence needed to provide best practice healthcare to all patients, whether sex work status has been disclosed or not.
This training is co-designed by Victorian HIV and Hepatitis Integrated Training and Learning (VHHITAL) program and Vixen, Victoria’s peer-only sex worker organisation; and is funded by the Victorian Department of Health.
Facilitators: Dr. Owen Harris, GP (Inner North Medical Centre) and Lena Van Hale (Vixen) in conjunction with VHHITAL.
Continuing Professional Development: 2 RACGP CPD hours (Educational Activity). All participants will receive a certificate of attendance for CPD purposes.
