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Workers

Unmet Needs in Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme Workers: A Public Health Challenge

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Public health initiatives for Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme workers are hindered by limited information on their specific healthcare needs, particularly regarding access to sexual and reproductive health services. A potential Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) outbreak in a PALM cohort within the Townsville Hospital and Health Service jurisdiction prompted an investigation, which revealed high rates of STI serology and an unprecedented demand for treatment services among workers. This prompted an extensive collaboration between public health units, employers, insurers, and healthcare providers to develop a tailored response to the outbreak.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme workers face significant health challenges, including limited access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services.
  • A potential STI outbreak in a PALM cohort within the Townsville Hospital and Health Service jurisdiction prompted an investigation, which found high rates of STI serology and a high demand for treatment services.
  • The high participation rate and demand for treatment services suggest unmet needs in SRH services among PALM workers.
  • The investigation found a high rate of syphilis infections (42%) and a high rate of latent syphilis infection among PALM workers, with no HIV infections identified and gonorrhoea rare in this cohort.
  • Chlamydia rates were elevated compared to the general Australian population, and were more likely in women.
  • Participants reported having a regular sexual partner, but with respect to those reporting exclusively casual intercourse, the networks of blood-borne virus (BBV) and STI transmission remain unclear.
  • The high participation in the screening event and overwhelmingly positive feedback suggest that offering preventive health screens to PALM workers upon arrival in Australia is a cost-effective and well-accepted approach.
  • Concerns have been raised about workers returning to their home countries and potentially becoming reinfection with STIs or BBVs, which minimizes the effectiveness of an arrival screening approach.

Statistics:

  • There are around 30,000 PALM workers in Australia, primarily residing in New South Wales and Queensland.
  • 97% of workers volunteered for screening after receiving culturally appropriate education in their language.
  • 42% of the cohort had latent syphilis infections, and 6% possible infectious syphilis.
  • Chlamydia rates were elevated compared to the general Australian population.

Sources:

  • https://www.palmscheme.gov.au/palm-scheme-data
  • https://devpolicy.org/pacific-labour-mobility-lets-talk-about-sex-20240902/
  • Lindy Kanan
  • https://www.true.org.au/
  • https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1326020025000226?via%3Dihub
  • https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/5/4/e007276.short
  • https://devpolicy.org/publications/reproductive-justice-palm-scheme/
  • Mikaela Seymour
  • Stefanie Vaccher

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