Pathways to inclusion for LGBTIQ+ families: Learning from families’ voices in maternity and child and family health
Background: Creating a more inclusive world for children requires listening to and acting on the voices of diverse families. LGBTIQ+ Australians experience poorer health outcomes than the general population, driven by barriers such as stigma and discrimination. For LGBTIQ+ parents, these barriers shape early parenting experiences and influence how children and families engage with maternity and child and family health services. However, the voices and experiences of these families are often underrepresented in service design.
Aim: To elevate the voices of LGBTIQ+ families and identify barriers and enablers to inclusive, family-centred care within maternity and child and family health nursing services in south eastern Sydney, Australia.
Method/approach: A co-designed needs analysis centred on lived experience was undertaken, informed by primary empirical data, including a consumer experience survey (75 LGBTIQ+ consumers), walking evaluations (13 LGBTIQ+ consumers), a staff learning needs assessment (54 staff), and 24 service audits. This approach privileged family voices as critical drivers of service improvement. This project was approved by the South Eastern Sydney Local Health District (SESLHD) Health Research Ethics Committee as a quality improvement project (QAQI/8October2024/5).
Results/findings: Families identified barriers including heteronormative language, staff knowledge gaps, limited recognition of diverse family structures, and inadequate data systems. They also described what inclusion looks like in practice: respectful and affirming care, visible signals of inclusion, and services that recognise and partner with diverse families.
Conclusion: Embedding families’ voices in service design is critical to inclusive health systems. Partnering with LGBTIQ+ families can inform practical, system-level changes that support inclusion in everyday care and improve engagement and outcomes for children.
Implications for children and families: When families’ voices are heard, children experience safer, more inclusive care where their identities and family structures are respected.
Implications for practitioners: Practitioners can support inclusion by building capability, embedding affirming practices, strengthening data collection, and creating visible signals of inclusion, while actively amplifying children’s and families’ voices.
Funding: This project was funded by the NSW LGBTIQ+ Health Funding Pool.
Keywords: families’ voices, professionals’ voices, health, inclusion, qualitative methods
This presentation relates to the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: