AWaGHR - Expertise - School of Public Health

Our team is internationally recognised for their extensive experience in women and girls’ health research. We use rigorous methodological approaches to drive meaningful impacts on knowledge, health and gender equity. Our research blends expertise in life course epidemiology and biostatistics, global and population health, and health systems research, with attention to the diverse determinants of health disparities and pathways to improving healthcare and policy.

Our Centre’s research and translation activities are built on five intersecting pillars of expertise:

Life course epidemiology
Genetic epidemiology
Methodology
Health equity
Clinical practice and policy

Life course epidemiology

Life course epidemiology is a key strength of our Centre. Our epidemiological research draws on a variety of data sources, particularly population-based surveys and linked administrative records, to examine the distribution, patterns, and factors influencing the health of women and girls throughout their lives.

Centre projects in this pillar include:

- The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH)
- Mothers and their Children’s Health (MatCH)
- Mothers and their Children’s Healthcare Experience Study (MatCHES)
- International collaboration for a Life course Approach to reproductive health and Chronic disease Events (InterLACE)
- MadeHER: Origins and Impacts of Menstrual Disorders and Pelvic Pain

Genetic epidemiology

Women’s health is shaped by complex, evolving interactions between genetic, hormonal, environmental, and social factors across the life span. Genetic risks do not act in isolation and may be modulated by life events, hormonal transitions, socioeconomic status and health behaviours. Our Centre applies a life course framework to uncover when and how these risks emerge, integrating genetic epidemiology with longitudinal data to identify disease pathways and intervention targets uniquely relevant to women.

Our research focuses on genetic contributions to reproductive conditions including endometriosis, PCOS, uterine fibroids, menstrual disorders, infertility, and transitions such as menarche and menopause.

Centre projects in this pillar include:
- Genetic variants, Early Life exposures, and Longitudinal Endometriosis symptoms Study (GELLES)
- Genomics of Reproductive Health and Disease, Endometriosis Genetics
- Mechanisms in early menopause
- Menarche to pre-Menopause: Reproductive factors and risk of cardiometabolic and respiratory conditions (M-PreM)

Methodology

Our Centre is deeply involved with data measurement (including survey design), data collection, linking health records from multiple sources, and statistical modelling to produce reliable, valid and generalisable results. Considerable attention is paid to data quality and data management using state-of-the-art methodology. We also develop and use biostatistical modelling and visualisation for complex and longitudinal data.

Centre projects in this pillar include:

- Improving Australia’s Dementia Statistics
- The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH)'s Common Conditions from Multiple Sources (CCMS) datasets.
- International collaboration for a Life course Approach to reproductive health and Chronic disease Events (InterLACE)

Health Equity

Our research addresses data and evidence gaps to advance health and gender equity. Intersecting geographic, environmental, social and economic determinants shape women and girls’ health. Our research attends to these diverse drivers and seeks to inform action for health and gender equity, including ensuring sex and gender are adequately considered in health research, clinical practice and policy.

With a focus on inclusion in diverse populations, our research in this area investigates the menstrual and reproductive health challenges faced by the 1.8 billion women and adolescent girls living in low-and middle-income country settings.

Centre projects in this pillar include:

- The Adolescent Menstrual Experiences and Health Cohort (AMEHC) Study
- Sex, gender and disease definitions: how can we do better for women’s health?
- The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH)
- Australian Perimenopause and Menopause (A-PaM)

Clinical Practice and Policy

Our Centre’s mission is to improve women and girls’ health and to conduct research that achieves this through impacting clinical practice, healthcare policies or wider social changes. Our research can improve the lives of women by understanding how access to healthcare varies between different social and demographic groups and how these factors impact health outcomes. Our research in this area also provides evidence to improve healthcare delivery.

Centre projects in this pillar include:
- A decision aid to support women with heavy menstrual bleeding
- Our IVF Support Study to improve emotional support during fertility treatment.
- Our research findings on fertility and stroke, which have been incorporated into the 2024 Guideline for the Primary Prevention of Stroke from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association