NSW Health Pathology is proud to be partnering with ACON as part of our ongoing work under the NSW Health LGBTQIA+ Strategy.
ACON is Australia’s leading LGBTQIA+ community organisation and recently, NSW Health Pathology participated for the third time in ACON’s annual Health + Wellbeing Equality Index (HWEI).
The index assesses and benchmarks LGBTQIA+ inclusive service delivery among health, wellbeing and human service providers.
At the recent Australian Pride in Health + Wellbeing Awards ceremony held by ACON, NSW Health Pathology was incredibly proud to be recognised as Australia’s only silver service provider for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the health category.
In order to achieve the silver status NSW Health Pathology needed to obtain high scores in the HWEI and provide evidence of a substantial amount of sustained or new work in this area.
ACON said NSW Health Pathology is considered to have been highly active in our inclusion of sexuality and gender diverse communities in comparison to the national benchmark for the assessed year.
“We achieved bronze status for the first time last year, and it is a marked achievement to progress to the silver status within a year,” said Jessica Lee, Deputy Director Strategic HR and Projects at NSW Health Pathology and Executive Co-Sponsor of the LGBTQIA+ Strategy. (pictured above left)
“This reflects our ongoing dedication and support to making NSW Health Pathology an inclusive environment for LGBTQIA+ patients and staff.
“One of the key improvements rolled out in the last 12 months is the LGBTQIA+ Inclusion Training for our frontline facing staff which focuses on educating and supporting our staff on how to provide safe, inclusive care for LGBTQIA+ people when they visit our service.
“This is supported by the Welcome Affirmation cards we offer in our collection centres which alert staff that a patient’s medical records may not match their chosen name.”

NSW Health Pathology also displays inclusion posters and other rainbow symbols of inclusion in patient-facing areas.
NSW Health Pathology Chief Executive Vanessa Janissen said she was proud to be leading an organisation that is creating an environment where all patients and colleagues feel safe and welcome.
“Pathology services are often someone’s first contact with the NSW Health system, and we set the tone for their experience. We need to be welcoming and safe,” Vanessa said.
“Each June during Pride Month is an opportunity to celebrate our diversity and foster a sense of belonging.”