ACEM Foundation Joseph Epstein Lecture

Gender-based violence is not just a social issue – it’s also one of the nation’s most pressing public health crises. In many cases, health professionals are the only ones who see its warning signs, engaging with patients – both victim-survivors and offenders – at precisely the moments when violence often begins or escalates: pregnancy, early parenthood, and emergencies. Yet coronial inquiries continue to show that opportunities to intervene are still being missed, sometimes with fatal consequences.

This presentation argues for mobilising the health system as a first line of defence, with a focus on equipping health professionals to recognise and respond to coercive control — now a criminal offence in Queensland. It will examine the systemic and personal barriers that hold practitioners back – from lack of training and privacy to persistent myths that violence is “not my business” – and outline the reforms that could remove them.

With the right skills, support, and resourcing, the health system could become one of the nation’s most powerful assets in the mission to end gender-based violence.