Australian Senate report on health and well-being

Report of the Australian Senate Community Affairs References Committee

Report of the Australian Senate Community Affairs References Committee, 2013. Photo: Morgan Carpenter


On 25 October 2013, the day before Intersex Awareness Day, the Senate of Australia’s Community Affairs Committee published a landmark report, entitled “Involuntary or coerced sterilisation of intersex people in Australia”. It contains 15 recommendations to improve the health and well-being of intersex people:

Recommendation 1

2.20 The committee recommends that governments and other organisations use the term ‘intersex’ and not use the term ‘disorders of sexual development’.

Recommendation 2

2.21 The committee recommends that health professionals and health organisations review their use of the term ‘disorders of sexual development’, seeking to confine it to appropriate clinical contexts, and should use the terms ‘intersex’ or ‘differences of sexual development’ where it is intended to encompass genetic or phenotypic variations that do not necessarily require medical intervention in order to prevent harm to physical health.

Recommendation 3

3.130 The committee recommends that all medical treatment of intersex people take place under guidelines that ensure treatment is managed by multidisciplinary teams within a human rights framework. The guidelines should favour deferral of normalising treatment until the person can give fully informed consent, and seek to minimise surgical intervention on infants undertaken for primarily psychosocial reasons.

Recommendation 4

3.133 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth government provide funding to ensure that multidisciplinary teams are established for intersex medical care that have dedicated coordination, record-keeping and research support capacity, and comprehensive membership from the various medical and non-medical specialisms. All intersex people should have access to a multidisciplinary team.

Recommendation 5

4.43 In light of the complex and contentious nature of the medical treatment of intersex people who are unable to make decisions for their own treatment, the committee recommends that oversight of these decisions is required.

Recommendation 6

5.30 The committee recommends that all proposed intersex medical interventions for children and adults without the capacity to consent require authorisation from a civil and administrative tribunal or the Family Court.

Recommendation 7

5.31 The committee recommends that the Standing Committee on Law and Justice consider the most expedient way to give all civil and administrative tribunals in all States and Territories concurrent jurisdiction with the Family Court to determine authorisation for intersex medical interventions proposed for a child.

Recommendation 8

5.32 The committee recommends that civil and administrative tribunals be adequately funded and resourced to consider every intersex medical intervention proposed for a child.

Recommendation 9

5.38 The committee recommends that the special medical procedures advisory committee draft guidelines for the treatment of common intersex conditions based on medical management, ethical, human rights and legal principles. These guidelines should be reviewed on an annual basis.

Recommendation 10

5.41 The committee recommends that complex intersex medical interventions be referred to the special medical procedures advisory committee for consideration and report to whichever body is considering the case.

Recommendation 11

5.70 The committee recommends that the provision of information about intersex support groups to both parents/families and the patient be a mandatory part of the health care management of intersex cases.

Recommendation 12

5.72 The committee recommends that intersex support groups be core funded to provide support and information to patients, parents, families and health professionals in all intersex cases.

Recommendation 13

6.11 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth Government support the establishment of an intersex patient registry and directly fund research that includes a long-term prospective study of clinical outcomes for intersex patients.

Recommendation 14

6.25 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth government investigate the appropriate regulation of the use of dexamethasone for prenatal treatment of CAH.

Recommendation 15

6.27 The committee recommends that, effective immediately, the administration of dexamethasone for prenatal treatment of CAH only take place as part of research projects that have ethics approval and patient follow-up protocols.

Local intersex organizations issue press releases:

OII Australia press statement.
AIS Support Group Australia press release.

Read the Australian Senate report.