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Dear Justine,
You are doing a brillant job. So glad you followed up and clarifed.
Keep up the good work.
Best wishes,
Kathleen
--------------------------------------------------------------
Kathleen
Fahy
Professor of Midwifery
Head of School of Nursing and
Midwifery
Faculty of Health
The University of Newcastle
University
Drive,
Callaghan, 2308
Ph 02 49215966
Fax 02 49216981
>>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] 09/25/02
03:36pm >>>
Hello Listers & NMAPers
A few points
in relation to the ABC coverage of the NMAP launch yesterday (those on Oz Mid
see ABC posting below).
I was quite disappointed in Auntie's coverage
of the NMAP launch, particularly the comment they reported from the NSW Health
Care Complaints Commissioner, Amanda Adrian. I called her this morning.
She relayed what she said to the ABC and commented that she had been
totally misrepresented.
She applauded a consumer plan for maternity
reform, she did say that focussing on one professional group was fatally
flawed, however, that if this plan looked across the continuum then it was a
positive step. So the ABC just chopped off the however bit, how
convenient!
She also quoted that complaints received by the commission
were largely from obstetric care, she backed up our claims for increased
midwife led care confirming their consistency with the NSW Sherman Report of
1989!!! and said that the argument against using midwives due to provider
numbers was unnecessary as this presented government with an opportunity to be
‘creative with funding.’
I am also concerned that as a national
consumer body asserting our rights to evidence based and cost effective
maternity care that we are branded with the negative ‘lobby group’ tag.
We are women and mother’s fighting for what we are totally entitled to
and it is a disgrace we are fighting at all!!!
Yes we are lobbying, but
if we’re a lobby group, then the AMA is the most powerful union in the
country, constantly holding the government to ransom, often without
cause.
I am going to approach Media Watch this afternoon. I think
they may be interested in this.
Discounting 12 months work and a
national campaign driven by women and mothers based on misrepresentation (and
the unhelpful comments of Jackie Kelly re Medicare Provider numbers) is not
on!
Yours in the struggle and in solidarity
Justine
Caines
Maternity Coalition
Posted: Tue, 24 Sept 2002 7:59
ACST
Lobby group presses for national midwifery
program
Australia is being urged to follow the lead of other
OECD countries, such as New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and implement a
national community midwifery service.
The National Maternity Coalition
has spent 12 months investigating the benefits and costs of a national
community midwifery service.
The program would give Australian women
access to one-on-one care by a midwife from early in pregnancy until their
baby is four to six weeks old.
Coalition president Barbara Vernon says
a national scheme could be up and running within five years by using the
Western Australian Midwifery Program as a template.
"That's had two
independent evaluations and has excellent clinical outcomes and women are
highly satisfied with the care they receive," Dr Vernon said.
However,
New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commissioner Amanda Adrian has warned
against focussing only on midwives.
"Any plan that focuses on
practitioner groups only is fundamentally flawed," Ms Adrian said.
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