One of the biggest issues that face women around the world today is healthcare and well-being. While it is a basic right of each and every woman, all over the world women are suffering from a lack of basic medical care and supplies. For this background guide my focus areas will be two regions: Oceania (also known as the Pacific) and East Asia. 

 

In both the Oceanic and East Asian regions one of the biggest threats to women and girls health is the lack of access to adequate health supplies and support. This guide will give an overview of the current healthcare status in these regions as well as the organizations and other programs that have been set up to help counteract these problems.

 

The region of Oceania is located in the southern hemisphere and is composed of 14 countries; Australia, Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. Meanwhile, the region of East Asia comprises China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea and Taiwan. Generally there is a high standard for women and girls, however the closer I looked into certain countries, the more flaws I saw.

 

While some of the countries are well-known leaders and innovators in the medical field, other countries are struggling to cope with overcrowding and collapsing healthcare systems.

 

Despite these challenges we can see that the life expectancy in both regions is almost the same.  As shown in the graph below, the life expectancy in Oceania is 77 years for males and 81 years for females, while in Asia the life expectancy is 71 years for males and 75 years for females (Statista, 2020). 

 

This research report will look at four countries that are spread across these two areas; Australia, Solomon Islands, Cambodia and finally South Korea. This will be a basic guide to introduce the areas and just some of the issues I will be researching about over the coming period. As an Indigenous Australian woman from Palawa Tribe I know first-hand what it is like to be an Indigenous woman and the issues that these woman and indeed women in these areas face today. Therefore, I hope that this guide will be helpful and serve as a good reference tool for my future reports.