Key Messages

  • Medicare provides specific health services.
  • People should be encouraged to manage all aspects of their health, including sexual and reproductive health.
  • It is important to have many sources of support to go to for assistance with sexuality issues and to be familiar with local sexual health services.

Learning Intention

Students will: Know there are many different services available that can help with health issues they may encounter.

Time

20 – 30 Minutes

Required Resources

  • Whiteboard and markers
  • Internet access for each group set of Where would you go? scenario cards and service cards.
Download Required Resources

Success criteria

Students will be able to:

  • Know of local health services and how to access them.
  • Know their rights to confidential health information.

Teaching Notes

It is advisable to familiarise yourself with the services listed in this activity in advance. Blank cards are available so, you can include relevant local, youth-friendly services . Discussions could include how
bulk billing works, whether they need to have their Medicare card with them or if the number will be sufficient, at what age they can apply for their own Medicare card and the laws about confidentiality. Young people need reassurance about confidentiality.

Procedure

  1. Display service cards and explain the help each service provides. Alternatively have students research each service to understand their roles. Share the information within the class.
  2. Display scenario cards and ask students to sort into provided category cards for who they would go to for advice about each.
  3. Allow for discussion about preferences for seeking help/ getting information.

Questioning

  • Are there multiple options for some scenarios?
  • What issues are important in each situation?
  • Who else could assist with the problem?
  • Would this service be accessible to everyone consider ethnicity/sexual orientation/gender and identity/ religion?
  • Do you think the service will be receptive to young people ie: easy to approach, understanding?
  • Would the service keep this problem confidential?
  • How would the person arrange payment for this consultation?
  • What do you think the reception staff know about this person’s problems and personal details?
  • What could the person do if this service can’t help them?

Extension
Could be an assessment piece

Formative assessment

  1. Students brainstorm a list of health and sexuality issues related to young people. List the answers. Examples to include sexual orientation issues, violence/abuse/rape/sexual assault, sexual harassment, contraception, STIs, gender identity concerns, relationship advice, menstruation, unintended pregnancy, online bullying, uninvited sexting, pressure for nudes,
  2. To determine existing knowledge have students brainstorm a second list of who they could go to for advice relating to the issues listed. Create a second list on the board.
  3. Show the service cards and question the students about
    – I. do they know these services and what they do
    – II. are there any that are new to them and
    – III. which ones were not included in the original class list?
  4. Individually or in pairs give each a health services to research. The task could include a worksheet asking for the following information:
    • Type of service, website, clinic etc.
    • Accessibility, opening hours, address, contact details, cost
    • If you can visit, are appointments necessary, how do you make one
    • Particular issues covered by this organisation
    • Local services that could also help, any other services, websites available related to the issue
    • Determine the reliability of this service and its information? What criterion did you use?
    • Complete a youth friendly assessment is the service youth friendly, why/ why not, what impact do you believe it would have on young people making healthy informed choices.

Summative assessment

  1. Individually or in pairs students make a presentation to the class on the service they investigated.
  2. Consolidate all resources into one list they could be grouped into three categories of youth friendliness/ accessibility/reliability (most, moderate, least).
  3. Publish the list in the school's website/intranet for other students and families.

Curriculum Information