New Initiative Aims to Improve Men's Health Outcomes

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has announced the formation of a Men’s Health Specific Interest Group to address significant health disparities affecting Australian men. The group aims to enhance engagement with preventive care and improve health outcomes.

In Australia, men have a life expectancy four years shorter than women, often dying from preventable causes. Male patients experience a 1.2 times higher total burden of disease and 1.6 times the rate of fatal burden compared to female patients. The new RACGP group, led by Dr Alex Romain, seeks to tackle these issues by promoting men’s health and providing support and education for GPs.

Dr Alex Romain highlighted the need for change, stating, “This health inequality wouldn’t be acceptable for another group of patients. I wondered how did we even get here, and more importantly, what is the way forward out of it?”

Expanding GP Support and Education

The Men’s Health Specific Interest Group will serve as an educational support network for GPs, enhancing their ability to address men’s health issues. Key activities include developing a new RACGP position statement, fostering skill development through the RACGP CPD programme, and collaborating with organisations like Healthy Male and Movember.

RACGP Vice President Dr Ramya Raman emphasised the importance of the initiative during Men’s Health Week, noting that men often avoid seeking medical care until issues become severe. “We want men to see their GP, whenever they need to, and for as long as they need to,” she said.

As part of its mission, the group will advocate for systemic changes, such as increased funding for longer consultations, to make healthcare more accessible for men. Dr Romain stressed the need for a healthcare system that supports extended consultations, stating, “Funding long consults properly is part of addressing men’s health.”

Dr Greg Malcher, the group’s Deputy Chair, has been instrumental in highlighting the issue. He has spent over twenty years recognising the scale of health problems faced by men in Australia. According to Dr Romain, “Greg recognised the scale of the problem he was seeing in his male patients and in Australia more generally, long before men’s health was the subject of the kind of interest that it is now.”

The 2026 theme of Men’s Health Week, ‘101 reasons to see your GP’, directly addresses the tendency of men to find excuses not to seek care. This initiative aims to change this mindset and encourage regular health check-ups.