"Had I not come out, there could well have been a whispering campaign that would have impeded my election as AMA president)," Phelps reveals in an interview in today's Weekend Magazine.

"But market research by the AMA shows doctors admire my honesty and integrity about being up-front about who I am."

The powerful lobbyist, who this week ended a spat with Health Minister Michael Wooldridge, also talks about how she no longer communicates with parents Shirley and George.

A daughter from Phelps' first marriage to a record producer is also estranged. But her teenage son, Carl, lives with Phelps and Stricker.

Asked whether rumours that Stricker and Phelps were seen at an IVF clinic recently were true, Stricker said: "We're not pregnant."