New Norwood business promises women ‘more than medication’
Dr Hanan Maghazaji fled war-torn Iraq 26 years ago. Decades later, the Adelaide gynaecologist and obstetrician is handing the reins of a thriving healthcare business to her children.
When gynaecologist Dr Hanan Maghazaji first arrived in Australia from Iraq in 2000, she was most surprised that “young women and young men don’t know much about their reproductive system”.
“One of the things I expected was that women here [would] have more sexual freedom and have a different look at sex, and sex before marriage and all of that, yet women here, they don’t know much,” Maghazaji said.
It is something she has been trying to change through her business, Women’s Health Plus, which in July opened a new Norwood clinic after a $700,000 investment.
Maghazaji, who has been working as an obstetrician and gynaecologist since 1989, founded the business in 2007, after requalifying in her profession here in Adelaide.
Since opening, the clinic has cared for more than 14,500 women, combining cosmetic services, dietetics, psychology and gynaecology under one roof, with plans to open more Adelaide practices and eventually expand interstate.
“We don’t look at women as, excuse my vulgar language, but as a vagina, or a reproductive system, we look at women as a whole person,” Maghazaji said.
“If women need to feel the best of themselves by using cosmetics, whatever it may be, like injectables, Botox, whatever they may want, I’m happy to provide it because I believe that everyone is entitled to feel the best of themselves.”
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She said the holistic approach has also helped women living with endometriosis, which she said is often “underdiagnosed, underestimated and women were really brushed off and not listened to properly” about their pain.
“My approach to endometriosis and pelvic pain in general was never just medications…we’ve got here a dietitian that actually understands women and offers them advice about diets, there’s physiotherapy to help with pelvic pain, there’s a psychologist to help with pain, and of course the team will include a gynecologist, but also sometimes can include a colorectal surgeon and someone to help them with their bowel.”
She also helps her patients – which come from a variety of backgrounds, including people from Middle Eastern cultures looking for a doctor that speaks Arabic – with taboo topics like not being able to reach orgasm, low libido, or erectile dysfunction.
“Both cultures don’t talk about these things, and if you don’t ask, they won’t tell you,” she said.
While caring for patients remains her passion, in 2023, Maghazaji said she was “exhausted” from juggling running the business post-Covid with performing surgery, so she handed the reins to her three children: Sana, Ali and Mostafa Hadi.
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“The fact that they believe in my vision, and they decided not only to take over the business, but to actually take it in leaps and bounds…this brings tears to my eyes,” she said.
“They’re my bosses now.”
Her daughter Sana Hadi started out working at Women’s Health Plus as a medical administrator and bookkeeper before being named a Director.
Hadi, a qualified clinical psychologist, introduced psychology services specialising in trauma, sleep disturbances, cognitive behavioural therapy and rehabilitation to the clinic.
Maghazaji said her children also introduced tech like the booking system HotDoc and AI scribe Heidi to the business, making them one of the first specialist clinics in the state to be using AI for consultations.
“For example, HotDoc I thought, ‘oh my god, is this gonna work for me’,” she said.
“I’m very adaptable, but in the beginning I thought “oh no”…Heidi, I now absolutely adore this… I talk to the patient and then it turns it into consult notes and a GP letter.”
Maghazaji said what was new to her, and evident in the new look of the Norwood practice, is “making it more into a wellness centre”, including an infrared sauna, boutique gym and a membership model.
Hadi said the membership model was designed to make preventative healthcare more accessible and supports everything from the gym to IV and iron infusions, massage therapies, lymphatic drainage, LED therapy, laser treatments and evidence-based skin services.
“Healthcare shouldn’t begin when something is wrong,” Hadi said.
“Women today want education, prevention and a trusted team who understands them as a whole person. That’s what the ‘Plus’ represents. It’s everything that traditional healthcare often leaves out.”
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