I hope the people of Mona Vale get behind the midwives and jump up and down, loud and long as they did in Mareeba. If they don't their service will be shelved for good. We certainly got somewhere with the help of the Hirst report and the support of the Cairns OB's. Cheers Judy
--- Andrea Robertson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > These two stories are in the Sydney Morning Herald today, > along with a big > colour photo, on page 3: > > > Pregnant pause as birth program gets the push > > By Ruth Pollard, Health Reporter > September 2, 2005 > > No continuity Lisa McLean, with son Luke, two, has lost her > midwife. > Photo: Peter Morris > > The NSW Government has abandoned a midwife project at Mona > Vale and Manly > hospitals, leaving up to 200 women - some of whom are due to > give birth in > the coming month - to scramble to find places at other > hospitals. > > Just days before the project was to go ahead, the Northern > Beaches Health > Service decided to shelve it and undertake a review of > maternity services > in the area. > > Lisa McLean, who is due to give birth in eight weeks, has been > affected by > the change. She was attracted to the program because of the > continuity of > care it provided to expectant mothers, who were to have been > allocated to > one midwife for prenatal, birthing and postnatal care. > > Now, the women must choose to give birth at the unit without > personalised > midwives, or find obstetricians or birthing centres elsewhere. > > Mrs McLean will stay with the unit but has no idea which > midwife will be > caring for her and her baby. "It was to become more of a > personal, > one-on-one experience; they are on call, they are there for > the birth and > the follow-up afterwards. That is the reason a lot of women go > to > obstetricians, even though they don't really need to, to have > that > continuity of care." > AdvertisementAdvertisement > > The general manager of the Northern Beaches Health Service, > Frank Bazik, > said he was not prepared to give his final approval to the > project before > having all maternity services reviewed to determine which > birthing model > was appropriate for each hospital. > > Insisting that it had been deferred for only two to three > months, Mr Bazik > said there had been no safety concerns about the program. > "There have been > some meetings with the obstetricians about this proposed model > and they are > supportive of it." > > However, the Herald understands that staff have been told that > "severe > budget problems" at the health service were a factor in the > decision. > > Sally Tracy, an associate professor of midwifery practice > development at > the University of Technology, Sydney, said there was no reason > to defer the > program. "I have no doubt that they have been bullied into not > allowing > this service to go ahead Clearly, there are people who have > vested > interests in this, who do not want to see a service where > women go to > midwives." > --------------------------- > > > > > Doctors irked at lack of say in midwifery talks > > September 2, 2005 > > > A rift has emerged between the NSW Government and the > Australian Medical > Association, which says it has been shut out of consultations > on the > development of maternity services. > > So deep is the division that the association has begun a > vigorous campaign > to reclaim ground in the debate. > > Andrew Pesce, an obstetrician and senior member of the > association, told > the Herald that while a recent review of six international > studies had > found some "modest benefits" from midwife-assisted births, it > had also > found "significant risks". > > "It showed an 83 per cent increase in the risk of infant > mortality," he said. > > Dr Pesce said NSW Health had made a policy decision to exclude > the > association from consultations, "presumably because they know > how we will > respond". But Kathleen Fahy, the dean of midwifery at the > University of > Newcastle, and the co-author of the review, Denis Walsh, have > disputed Dr > Pesce's interpretation. > AdvertisementAdvertisement > > The review, by the international non-profit group the Cochrane > > Collaboration, had not found "a significant difference in baby > deaths and > it is less then honest of Dr Pesce to imply that it did", > Professor Fahy > said. After reviewing each of the studies included in the > review she found > 60 per cent of women who were supposed to give birth assisted > by a midwife > had been transferred to a hospital. > > "Yet all the baby deaths were blamed on the birthing centres, > even if the > baby died hours, days or months after transfer to medical > care." > > Most deaths were due to gross prematurity, gross abnormality > or an > unexplained stillbirth, she said. > > "Their [the doctors'] fear is that midwives will get a > Medicare number and > set up in competition and women may choose midwives as their > primary care > providers rather than doctors." > > The association's NSW president, John Gullotta, said yesterday > that he had > also received no response to a request for a meeting with the > Minister for > Health, John Hatzistergos. > > "It is very important that he does talk to his major > medico-political lobby > group. As health minister if you are not talking to the AMA > you are not > talking to the major group." > > Mr Hatzistergos would not say whether the Government had > excluded the > association, but said it had not put its concerns to him. > > Ruth Pollard > > > > > ----- > Andrea Robertson > Birth International * ACE Graphics * Associates in Childbirth > Education > > e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > web: www.birthinternational.com > > > -- > This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. > Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or > unsubscribe. > Send instant messages to your online friends http://au.messenger.yahoo.com -- This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or unsubscribe.
