BREAKING SILOS TO TRANSFORM WOMEN’S HEALTH THROUGH MEDTECH Inaugural Summit discusses new evidence in inequities affecting diagnosis, treatment and innovation
With
Jasjit Baveja PhD,
Director of Regulatory and Industry Policy,
Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA)
SEGMENT
Filmed in Sydney | July 2026
In an interview with Australian Health Journal, Jasjit Baveja, Director of Regulatory and Industry Policy at the Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA), highlighted the growing importance of medical technology in addressing longstanding inequities in women’s health.
Drawing on the outcomes of the inaugural MTAA Women’s Health MedTech Summit, she explained how the event brought together clinicians, researchers, industry leaders, regulators, investors, government representatives and patient advocates to tackle complex challenges through a collaborative approach.
Baveja said the summit was intentionally designed to break down traditional barriers between stakeholders, noting that, “it doesn’t matter who it was, they were all describing different parts of the same problem.” Discussions extended well beyond reproductive and sexual health to examine conditions that affect women exclusively, differently or disproportionately across every stage of life.
The summit identified several key barriers, including delayed diagnosis, gaps in clinical evidence, medical device design that often fails to account for women’s needs, and regulatory and reimbursement challenges. Baveja also highlighted compelling statistics that demonstrate persistent gender disparities in research and healthcare, reinforcing the need for greater investment in women’s health across the entire medical technology lifecycle.
Importantly, she said the discussions reinforced that women’s health is no longer a niche issue, but one with significant health, workforce, economic and innovation implications.
Looking ahead, Baveja said there was “strong support to move from conversation to action,” with MTAA committing to establish a Women’s Health Policy Group and develop a white paper outlining barriers, opportunities and policy recommendations to improve health outcomes for Australian women.
Source: Adapted from transcript
Media access credit: Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA)
-
Paramedics seek team-based primary health care pilots
The Chief Executive Officer of The Australasian College of Paramedicine, John Bruning spoke with Australian Health Journal about the following:
New models of care proposed for paramedics
Paramedicine pilot program in the pre-budget submission
Scope of how paramedics can support General Practice, and guidelines on safety and quality
Current limitations experienced by paramedics needing to be addressed by Government
Other health priorities hopefully addressed in Federal Budget.In the lead up to the Australian Federal Budget in May 2023, Australian Health Journal reached out to peak health industry bodies to hear about their priorities, either noted in pre-budget submissions lodged with Federal Government in January 2023 or in recent forums such as the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce.
-
Startup Advances Biosensing
Melbourne based Nutromics is looking to solve some of the biggest healthcare challenges, by delivering on a mission to revolutionise precision medicine with Continuous Molecular Monitoring (CMM). Nutromics is developing biosensor technology integrated into a small and unobtrusive wearable smart patch.The software solution aims to be flexible and designed to connect with mobile and web solutions for integration with consumer health software and hospital platforms.
-
Nurse led micro-suction earwax removal service continues success
At the 2024 Telstra Best of Business Awards in February, Earworx was recognised as the National Championing Health Award winner. Lisa Hellwege, the Clinical Director and Founder of Earworx, expressed her gratitude to the entire team and their patients for their trust and support. Earworx specialises in providing professional earwax removal services led by trained nurses using a procedure called microsuction.
