Health of mothers and babies must remain paramount

The AMA has responded cautiously to the government’s Maternity Services Review launched today by Minister Roxon.

AMA President, Dr Rosanna Capolingua, said the medical profession’s principal concern is the health and safety of mothers and babies.

“This is also the key concern of families. The health of mother and child must take precedence over all other considerations,” Dr Capolingua said.

“This report holds no real surprises. It reinforces existing practice where midwives work in collaborative teams with obstetricians and GP obstetricians.

“It is encouraging that the report is measured and tentative in its deliberations, including acknowledging Australia’s strong record of safety in maternity services and requiring that changes to maternity services be guided by evidence, including clear and consistent collection of data.

“The Minister’s media release is much more gung ho, claiming the report brings better services for mother’s and babies a step closer, a claim the report itself carefully avoids.

“The AMA supports improved access for indigenous and rural communities to the world class services most Australian women already enjoy.”

Dr Capolingua said the real test of the report is not in the recommendations, but the policy it generates.  “We will keep government accountable for any changes that lower the bar on the health of women and their babies,” she said.

“It is not enough to run maternity services on the belief that birth is a natural process. When things go wrong, and they often do, women need immediate access to an obstetrician, an anaesthetist and a paediatrician. This access saves lives.

“I fear the introduction of a system where women are pressured into having a ‘natural birth’ that puts them and their baby at risk. Too often in other countries, including New Zealand, the midwife model means obstetricians are only called in when the ‘natural birth’ has become a medical emergency.

“Rather than expanding the range of services available to women, the New Zealand experience saw the virtual abandonment of GP obstetrics in rural areas.

“Any policy that doesn’t seek to improve our current world-class survival rates for mothers and babies must be viewed with deep suspicion.”