PHPA (Pro-life Health Professionals Australia) is the national peak body dedicated to supporting healthcare providers who advocate for medical care, that safeguards the lives of both pregnant mothers and their in-utero infant. Established in 2024, our organisation stands firm on the values of the Hippocratic tradition, recognising that human life begins at fertilisation and should be protected in-utero.

Australia is among the few countries where abortion is legal throughout all 9 months. This is because there is no upper gestational limit where it is illegal. PHPA supports health professionals and trainees who face increasing pressure to conform and compromise their values. We provide essential resources, confidential advice, and networking opportunities to support our members to provide life-affirming healthcare.

Our Vision

A healthcare culture that protects every human life from fertilisation to natural death.

 

Our Mission

To serve as Australia's peak body for supporting healthcare workers, providing a unified voice that safeguards human life through advocacy, research and education.

 

Our Core Values

  • The Hippocratic Tradition: We envision that medical practice must protect the lives of both the mother and her infant. We are committed to the foundational principal of medicine:"First do no harm". Intentional killing is never healthcare.
  • Scientific Integrity: We recognise the biological fact that a distinct human life begins at fertilisation, and deserves protection from its earliest stages.
  • Life-affirming Healthcare: We acknowledge that pregnancy is a natural state, not a disease, and that healthcare should seek to maintain and restore health or provide comfort, rather than end life.
  • Compassion in Complexity: We advocate for supportive, life-affirming care for families facing difficult antenatal diagnoses, focusing on quality of life and medical excellence, rather than promoting the practice of eugenics.
  • Freedom of Conscience: We support the right of healthcare workers to practice according to their values in regard to life issues, without coercion or professional compromise.

 

Led by Dr. Melissa Lai, a senior Neonatologist (newborn medicine specialist) with a commitment to research and advocacy, our executive team is devoted to building a strong membership base, advising legislative reforms, submitting position statements, and developing evidence-based clinical guidelines that value both the mother and her in-utero infant. With additional representation from Obstetrics, General Practice, Midwifery, Nursing, Allied Health, Bioethics and Legal Expertise, our executive leadership are ready to fulfil PHPA's mission in advocating for mothers, their infants in-utero and health professionals who are committed to protecting the most vulnerable.

 

We Provide

Communication

Up to date information on clinical, research and legislative developments, advocacy opportunities and community events.

Advice

Seek confidential advice through our members only email list service.

Support

Meet and network with other professionals working in the provision of life-affirming healthcare across Australia. PHPA hosts an annual conference, as well as webinars, workshops and education events.

Join us in our mission to make a meaningful difference in the lives of mothers and their infants by promoting a culture that respects and protects life from its very beginning.