Medical Journal of Australia (MJA)

Reports of rising stillbirth rates in Australia have generated concern among affected parents and other stakeholders. Review of the national data suggests that much of the rise is being driven by an increase in terminations of pregnancy after 20 weeks' gestation. This increase coincides with legislative changes expanding access to terminations beyond 20 weeks.

Plastic: a breakthrough innovation Plastic has transformed modern life. Light-weight, versatile and cheap to produce, it has enabled innovation that reshaped how we live: making cars lighter and safer, electronics smaller and more affordable, food safer and longer-lasting, and clothing more accessible through synthetic fibres. In medicine, it has improved care.

At its heart, healthcare is a conversation. A patient needs to explain what is wrong. They need to understand their options. They need to make decisions about their own care. Clinicians need clear information too. They need to understand symptoms, explain risks, discuss treatment, and check whether advice has been understood. When language support is missing, both sides lose something important. Patients can misunderstand diagnoses, medication instructions, treatment options or follow-up advice.

When it comes to health care in Australia, the mouth is too often considered separate to the rest of the body. Medicare doesn’t cover a trip to the dentist in the same way it covers other types of health care. But for many Indigenous people, health is viewed holistically, where body, mind and emotions, family and kinship, community, culture, Country and spirituality are intertwined.

For the nearly one-third of Australians living in regional, rural and remote (RRR) areas, health outcomes remain poorer than in major cities. Life expectancy is lower, and rates of chronic disease are higher. Access to care continues to be shaped by geography, workforce shortages and the broader social determinants of health. At the same time, these communities are not short on expertise and sound ideas about how to improve health outcomes.

For many survivors, we can carry lifelong grief, fear and mistrust, linking back to our forced removal from our families, Country, identity and culture — routine and clinical environments can often mirror the institutions where we experienced physical abuse and were traumatised. Our experience as survivors reflects why trauma-informed care matters in everyday practice.

Australia has some of the best cancer survival rates and approximately 1.6 million cancer survivors — a testament to advancements in cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment. But cancer survival comes at a price — physical, emotional, practical, and existential.

Indigenous health Women's health Obstetrics Volume 224 - Published ahead of Issue 7 Authors: Jessica Bennett, Jamie Bryant, Kade Booth, Michelle Kennedy Correspondence: jessica.bennett@newcastle.edu.au Med J Aust 2026 || doi: 10.5694/mja2.70237 Published online: 30 June 2026 Abstract Breast milk provides both short-term and long-term health benefits and is critical for infants admitted to neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).

Sponsored 29 June 2026 Guidelines now recommend a bone anabolic for the first line osteoporosis treatment of patients at very high risk of fracture. For GPs, identifying these patients as soon as possible is now an important part of osteoporosis care. Osteoporosis-related fractures cost around $3.5 billion in 2023 and are estimated to increase to $4.9 billion per year by 2033. That’s a 38% increase over a 10-year period (here).

Australia spends more on health each year. Yet our new research, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, shows that primary care — the GP visits, preventive care and care coordination that most Australians rely on — has been receiving a shrinking share of the pie. This pattern sits alongside recent expansions in bulk billing incentives, not yet visible in the data, and more modest investment relative to a broader trajectory of spending.