National Advocacy
What We Do
There are over 800,000 people diagnosed with diabetes in Australia. The majority of these are type 2, previously known as ‘Mature Age Onset Diabetes’. About 10% are type 1, previously known as ‘Juvenile Diabetes”, and at any given time, there are a smaller number of women with gestational diabetes.
Any person with diabetes or their family can attest to the everyday challenges of living with diabetes.
The National Advocacy Unit (NAU), situated in Diabetes Australia’s National Office, acts on behalf of people with diabetes by advocating or lobbying at a Federal Government level or on issues of national concern.
There are two main areas of national advocacy within the NAU – reactive and proactive.
Reactive advocacy involves trying to find a solution to national issues which are raised by individual people with diabetes or their families. Proactive advocacy identifies need of, and works towards improvements in the quality of life for people with diabetes as a whole.
The NAU has built up effective relationships within the Federal Government, its Departments, other health and private national bodies, to advocate on issues such as insurance inequities, better access to pharmaceuticals, driver’s licence standards, and discrimination in the workplace or in everyday life.
We are also ably assisted in our endeavours at a Federal level by the Parliamentary Diabetes Support Group, an energetic non-partisan group of parliamentarians with a particular focus of helping people with diabetes.
You can contact the National Advocacy Unit:
By email – advocate@diabetesaustralia.com.au
By phone – 02 6232 3823
By fax – 02 6230 1535
State and Territory Advocacy Officers
Travel and immigration
Achievements in National Advocacy
Looking ahead
National Advocacy Goals
(pdf 105kB)
