Women during Aldermaston Peace march 1965

Women with placards and banners during Aldermaston Peace march 1965. The march covered the distance between Ipswich and Brisbane, Australia, walked in relays covering approximately two miles each. Most relay sections were sponsored by one or more individual organisations.

Women during Aldermaston Peace March, Brisbane Australia 1964

Marchers with placards and aprons during Aldermaston Peace March, April 5 1964, Brisbane Australia. The march covered the distance between Ipswich and Brisbane, Australia. Marchers walked in relays covering approximately two miles each. Most relay sections were sponsored by one or more individual organisations.

Women and children during Aldermaston Peace march 1965

Women and children with placards and banners during Aldermaston Peace march 1965. The march covered the distance between Ipswich and Brisbane, Australia, walked in relays covering approximately two miles each. Most relay sections were sponsored by one or more individual organisations.

Women wearing peace aprons during Peace march in Brisbane, Australia 1963

Women wearing peace aprons during Peace march in Brisbane, Australia 1963. Cars can be seen in the background.

Women and men during the 1963 Peace March, Brisbane, Australia

Women and men during Peace march in Brisbane, Australia 1963. Car can be seen in the background. Two men one with drum follow the women, one of which has a banner Women strike for peace say U.A.W. The Union of Australian Women is a national organisation that was formed in 1950. Its aim is to work for the status and wellbeing of women across the world. It has been involved in a wide variety of campaigns that concern women. The Union of Australian Women networks with other women's community and union groups on such issues.

Women with umbrellas during Peace march on Sunday April 5th 1964, Brisbane.

Two women with umbrellas outside a cemetery during Peace march, Sunday April 5th Brisbane, Australia, 1964.

Women's satisfaction with general practice consultations

Objective: To determine women's satisfaction with general practice services. Design: Cross-sectional postal questionnaire conducted during April to September 1996 (part of the baseline survey of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health). Participants: Women aged 18-22 (n=14739), 45-49 (n=14013) and 70-74 (n=12941) years, randomly selected from the Medicare database, with oversampling of women from rural and remote areas. Main outcome measures: Frequency of use of general practice services; satisfaction with the most recent visit to a general practitioner (CP), prevalence of selected symptoms; preference for a female doctor. Results: The most recent visit to a GP was rated overall as good, very good or excellent by more than 80% of women, with increasing levels of satisfaction with increasing age of the women. However, satisfaction was lower for waiting room time and cost of the visit. A third of the young and middle-aged women living in rural and remote areas were dissatisfied with the cost of the visit. Young women were more likely to prefer a female doctor, and many were dissatisfied with their GP's skills at explaining their problem and giving them a chance to give an opinion and ask questions. The most prevalent symptoms for all women included headaches and tiredness, and many were not satisfied with the health services available to help them deal with these symptoms. Conclusions: Australian women have high levels of satisfaction with GP consultations. However, more effective strategies may be needed to improve communication with younger women, and there is an unmet need for services to help all women deal with some common symptoms. Dissatisfaction with cost of services and women's preference for female doctors have implications for future health policy.

What is a healthy weight for middle aged women?

OBJECTIVE: To explore associations between body mass index (BMI) and selected indicators of health and well-being and to suggest a healthy weight range (based on BMI) for middle aged Australian women. DESIGN: population based longitudinal study (cross-sectional baseline data). SUBJECTS: 13431 women aged 45-49 y who participated in the baseline survey for the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. RESULTS: Forty-eight percent of women had a BMI>25kg/m(2). Prevalence of medical problems (for example, hypertension, diabetes), surgical procedures (cholescystectomy, hysterectomy) and symptoms (for example, back pain) increased monotonically with BMI, while indicators of health care use (for example, visits to doctors) showed a 'J' shaped relationship with BMI. Scores for several sub-scales of the MOS short form health survey (SF36) (for example, general health, role limitations due to emotional difficulties, social function, mental health and vitality) were optimal when BMI was around 19-24 kg/m(2). After adjustment for area of residence, education, smoking, exercise and menopausal status, low BMI was associated with fewer physical health problems than mid-level or higher BMI, and the nationally recommended BMI range of 20-25 was associated with optimum mental health, lower prevalence of tiredness and lowest use of health services. CONCLUSIONS: Acknowledging the limitations of the cross-sectional nature of these data, the results firmly support the benefits of leanness in terms of reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and gall bladder disease. The findings are moderated, however, by the observation that both low and high BMI are associated with decreased vitality and poorer mental health. The optimal range for BMI appears to be about 19-24 kg/m(2). From a public health perspective this study provides strong support for the recommended BMI range of 20-25 as an appropriate target for the promotion of healthy weight in middle aged Australian women.

Women's health Australia: Recruitment for a national longitudinal cohort study

The Women's Health Australia (WHA) project is a longitudinal study of several cohorts of Australian women, which aims to examine the relationships between biological, psychological, social and lifestyle factors and women's physical health, emotional well-being, and their use of and satisfaction with health care. Using the Medicare database as a sampling frame (with oversampling of women from rural and remote areas), 106,000 women in the three age groups 18-23, 45-50 and 70-75 were sent an invitation to participate and a 24-page self-complete questionnaire. Reminder letters, a nation-wide publicity campaign, information brochures, a freecall number for inquiries, and the option of completing the questionnaire by telephone in English or in the respondent's own language, were used to encourage participation. Statutory regulations precluded telephone follow-up of non-respondents. Response rates were 41% (N = 14,792), 54% (N = 14,200) and 36% (N = 12,614) for the three age groups. Comparison with Australian census data indicated that the samples are reasonably representative of Australian women in these age groups, except fur a somewhat higher representation of women who are married or in a defacto relationship, and of women with post-school education. The most common reason for non-participation was lack of interest or time. Personal circumstances, objections to the questionnaire or specific items in it, and concerns about confidentiality were the other main reasons. Recruitment of three representative age-group cohorts of women, and the maintenance of these cohorts over a number of years, will provide a valuable opportunity to examine associations over time between aspects of women's lives and their physical and emotional health and well-being.

Breastfeeding duration in an Australian population: The influence of modifiable antenatal factors

Despite well-documented health benefits of breastfeeding for mothers and babies, most women discontinue breastfeeding before the recommended 12 months to 2 years. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of modifiable antenatal variables on breastfeeding outcomes. A prospective, longitudinal study was conducted with 300 pregnant, Australian women. Questionnaires containing variables of interest were administered to women during their last trimester; infant feeding method was assessed at I week and 4 months postpartum. Intended breastfeeding duration and breastfeeding self-efficacy were identified as the most significant modifiable variables predictive of breastfeeding outcomes. Mothers who intended to breastfeed for < 6 months were 2.4 times as likely to have discontinued breastfeeding at 4 months compared to those who intended to breastfeed for > 12 months (35.7% vs 87.5%). Similarly, mothers with high breastfeeding self-efficacy were more likely to be breastfeeding compared to mothers with low self-efficacy (79.3% vs 50.0%).

The play of identities in Cypriot-Australian family storytelling

This article adopts a microanalytic approach to examine storytelling as a co-construction by family members in a Cypriot-Australian family. Previous studies on family storytelling have focused on the various roles of family members in storytelling with a means of studying family socialization (Miller et al., 1990; Ochs & Taylor, 1992; Blum-Kulka, 1997). These studies used critical discourse analysis, socioculturel theories, performance and pragmatic approaches to storytelling. This article offers a distinctive approach to family storytelling by examining the discourse and social identities that family members display during the storytelling. The data originate in a study that involves interviews with three generations of Greek-Australian and Cypriot-Australian women regarding their relationships with each other. In this paper we investigate the contributions of the father and the daughters in the course of the mother's turn at storytelling. The first part of the analysis focuses on the husband's discourse identities as a contributor, initiator and elicitor of his wife's storytelling. During the storytelling we also observe the production and exchange of different social identities between the husband and the mother, such as the 'unwilling suitor', the 'embarrassed schoolgirl' or the 'forceful but teasing husband'. The second part describes how the daughters take part in their mother's storytelling, producing a variety of identities such as the 'impatient mother', the 'complaining', 'happy', or 'good' mothers and daughters. These investigations succinctly illustrate how narratives become a resource for members' 'display' and 'play' of identities. Copyright ©2002, John Benjamins B.V.

Too wet to exercise? Leaking urine as a barrier to physical activity in women

Leaking urine Is frequently mentioned (anecdotally) by women as a barrier to physical activity. The aim of this paper was to use results from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH) to explore the prevalence of leaking urine in Australian women, and to ascertain whether leaking urine might be a barrier to participation for women. More than 41,000 women participated in the baseline surveys of the ALSWH in 1996. More than one third of the mid-age (45-50 years) and older (70-75) women and 13% of the young women (18-23) reported leaking urine. There was a cross-sectional association between leaking urine and physical activity, such that women with more frequent urinary leakage were also more likely to report low levels of physical activity. More than one thousand of those who reported leaking urine at baseline participated in a follow-up study in 1999. Of these, more than 40% of the mid-age women (who were aged 48-53 in 1999), and one in seven of the younger (21-26 years) and older (73-79 years) women reported leaking urine during sport or exercise. More than one third of the mid-age women and more than one quarter of the older women, but only 7% of the younger women said they avoided sporting activities because of leaking urine. The data are highly suggestive that leaking urine may be a barrier to physical activity, especially among mid-age women. As current estimates suggest that fewer than half of all Australian women are adequately active for health benefit, health professionals could be more proactive in raising this issue with women and offering help through non-invasive strategies such as pelvic floor muscle exercises.

Who does not gain weight? Prevalence and predictors of weight maintenance in young women

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence and predictors of weight maintenance over time in a large sample of young Australian women. DESIGN: This population study examined baseline and 4y follow-up data from the cohort of young women participating in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. SUBJECTS: A total of 8726 young women aged 18 - 23y at baseline. MEASURES: Height, weight and body mass index (BMI); physical activity; time spent sitting; selected eating behaviours (eg dieting, disordered eating, takeaway food consumption); cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption; parity; and socio-demographic characteristics. RESULTS: Only 44% of the women reported their BMI at follow-up to be within 5% of their baseline BMI (maintainers); 41% had gained weight and 15% had lost weight. Weight maintainers were more likely to be in managerial or professional occupations; to have never married; to be currently studying; and not to be mothers. Controlling for sociodemographic factors, weight maintainers were more likely to be in a healthy weight range at baseline, and to report that they spent less time sitting, and consumed less takeaway food, than women who gained weight. CONCLUSIONS: Fewer than half the young women in this community sample maintained their weight over this 4y period in their early twenties. Findings of widespread weight gain, particularly among those already overweight, suggest that early adulthood, which is a time of significant life changes for many women, may be an important time for implementing strategies to promote maintenance of healthy weight. Strategies which encourage decreased sitting time and less takeaway food consumption may be effective for encouraging weight maintenance at this life stage.

Benefits, harms and costs of screening mammography in women 70 years and over: a systematic review

Objective: To assess the (i) benefits, (ii) harms and (iii) costs of continuing mammographic screening for women 70 years and over. Data sources and synthesis: (i) We conducted a MEDLINE search (1966 - July 2000) for decision-analytic models estimating life-expectancy gains from screening in older women. The five studies meeting the inclusion criteria were critically appraised using standard criteria. We estimated relative benefit from each model's estimate of effectiveness of screening in older women relative to that in women aged 50-69 years using the same model. (ii) With data from BreastScreen Queensland, we constructed balance sheets of the consequences of screening for women in 10-year age groups (40-49 to 80-89 years), and (iii) we used a validated model to estimate the marginal cost-effectiveness of extending screening to women 70 years and over. Results: For women aged 70-79 years, the relative benefit was estimated as 40%-72%, and 18%-62% with adjustment for the impact of screening on quality of life. For women over 80 years the relative benefit was about a third, and with quality-of-life adjustment only 14%, that in women aged 50-69 years. (ii) Of 10 000 Australian women participating in ongoing screening, about 400 are recalled for further testing, and, depending on age, about 70-112 undergo biopsy and about 19-80 cancers are detected. (iii) Cost-effectiveness estimates for extending the upper age limit for mammographic screening from 69 to 79 years range from $8119 to $27 751 per quality-adjusted life-year saved, which compares favourably with extending screening to women aged 40-49 years (estimated at between $24 000 and $65 000 per life-year saved). Conclusions: Women 70 years and over, in consultation with their healthcare providers, may want to decide for themselves whether to continue mammographic screening. Decision-support materials are needed for women in this age group.

Capturing the complexity of women's experiences: A mixed-method approach to studying incontinence in older women

Capturing the voices of women when the issue is of a sensitive nature has been a major concern of feminist researchers. It has often been argued that interpretive methods are the most appropriate way to collect such information, but there are other appropriate ways to approach the design of research. This article explores the use of a mixed-method approach to collect data on incontinence in older women and argues for the use of a variety of creative approaches to collect and analyze data.