Sexual assault support services struggling to cope with record demand
ABC News
Sexually violent crime has increased by 110 per cent in the past 25 years, yet specialised counselling services say they are unable to meet the demand.
Key points:
- Specialised support services are struggling due to an exponential increase in requests for help after sexual assaults
- A number of ‘black spots’ around Australia have no sexual assault support services at all
- Full Stop Australia’s statistics show its counsellors are unable to respond to one out of three callers to its hotline
ABC’s 7.30 has obtained exclusive access to waitlists of sexual assault clinics across the country, showing that wait times can be up to a year and a half.
In New South Wales, the clinic at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney has a waitlist of between six and 12 months, while Westmead Hospital in Sydney’s west currently has an eight-month waitlist.
It’s a six-to-nine-month wait for the service at Toowoomba, and one and a half years for some counselling programs at Laurel Place on the Sunshine Coast.
To read the rest of the article please go to: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-18/sexual-assault-support-services-struggling-with-demand/101050998
