Special Interest Groups

The Fertility Society of Australia supports the work of several “special interest groups” which have been developed by its members.

 

Protection of Fertility

The Launch of a Special Interest Group in Fertility Preservation

By Dr Catharyn Stern

The first business meeting of the Special Interest Group in Fertility Preservation (FPS), attended by 46 hardy individuals, was held on Tuesday 21st of October, 2008 during the FSA annual meeting in Brisbane, Australia.

We identified a number of aims for the Group, including:

  1. promoting a general improvement in FPS laboratory protocols,
     
  2. organizing focused meetings/workshops to evaluate new analytical approaches that might be used in laboratories and in surgery,
     
  3. facilitating collaborative research and 
     
  4. improving communication and education among societies and groups with interests relevant to Fertility Preservation.

Our most recent initiative is to develop a National Database to collect and share a register of information that will allow rigorous and thorough evaluation of various techniques and approaches and the implementation of any new developments in the area.

Thanks to the hard work and enthusiasm of committed members, we envisage collaborative contributions from Oncologists Fertility Specialists, Andrologists, Nursing Staff and Scientists in the field of Fertility preservation in the near future.

For more information about this steering group, its vision and mission, its activities, memberships, resources and publications, please visit their dedicated webpage.

Pre-Conception Health

The Launch of a Special Interest Group in Pre-Conception Health

The first business meeting of the Pre-Conception Health Special Interest Group (PCH-SIG) attended by 22 keen individuals was held at the Fertility Society of Australia (FSA) annual conference in Perth, Australia on 26th of October, 2009.

We identified a number of aims for the group including:

  • Identification of models of care to address and assess lifestyle factors in fertility clinics across Australia:
     
  • Development and synthesis of existing pre-conception guidelines for Australian populations – both general and specific to infertility Facilitating collaborative research:
     
  • Development of a national database of projects commensurate with the PCH-SIG mission.

We are delighted to be launching the Pre-Conception Health Special Interest Group and welcome new members.

For more information about this special interest group, its vision and mission, memberships, and lifestyle guideline, please visit their dedicated webpage.

 

The Centre for Research Excellence in Women’s Health in Reproductive Life (CRE WHiRL)

CRE WHiRL addresses neglected women’s reproductive health gaps in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, infertility and early menopause.

In 2019 the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) recognized the need for the establishment of a Centre for Research Excellence (CRE) aimed at improving understanding and knowledge translation in relation to key problems in women’s reproductive health – Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, infertility and early menopause. This research program, led by Professor Helena Teede, is funded for five years.

CRE WHIRL has four inter-related research streams focused on new knowledge, evidence-based guidelines, benchmarking of care and effective evidence translation for patients, practitioners and policy makers.

  • Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
  • Infertility
  • Early Menopause
  • Improving translation for patients, practitioners and policy makers

CRE-WHIRL provides a unique, international prospect for large scale, visionary and meaningful health impact for common, neglected women’s reproductive health priorities currently causing increasing health and financial burden, by addressing key gaps and broadening successful collaboration networks. CRE WHiRL aligns with Australian policy and WHO priorities and seeks to provide the evidence, research translation workforce development, collaboration and expertise to deliver measurable health benefits.

For more information about this special interest group, its vision and mission, memberships, and lifestyle guideline, please visit their dedicated website.