Hastings electorate
Paul MERCURIO (Hastings) (14:50): My constituency question is to the Minister for Health. What does the Allan Labor government’s pain inquiry mean for people, like Ash in my electorate, who are suffering with connective tissue disorder and EDS. Ash came into my office to talk about her journey with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome or EDS and the absolute horror of living with this syndrome, the nightmare of dealing with getting a diagnosis and the complete helplessness she feels in trying to get any sort of help or support. EDS comes under the wider umbrella of connective tissue disorder. I spoke with Ash about the women’s pain survey, and she was very keen to hear about the outcome for people like herself. I would like to thank the Parliamentary Secretary for Women’s Health, the member for Northcote, for her work on the pain survey and also for meeting with me and sufferers of EDS to hear their harrowing stories. I encourage anyone suffering from EDS to call their local MP, make a time to meet and let them know about this insidious and little-understood syndrome.