Media Release - March 7 2003

Mums March To Demand Commitment From Health Minister On Program To Promote Good Parenting

"Good parenting skills start before a baby is born. The current system in NSW is so fragmented it is failing women and their children. A group of mothers have the answer and they are going to make the NSW Health Minister, Craig Knowles listen," said Ms Caines, NSW President of the Maternity Coalition.

The Maternity Coalition has presented Minister Knowles and senior officials of NSW Health with a proven model of care to really assist women and families, particularly those at risk. Providing pregnant women with one known carer (a midwife) from early pregnancy to 6 weeks after the birth.

Health Minister Craig Knowles says he is very supportive of our work and yet he cannot make an election commitment to provide women and their families with this wonderful support. Near his own electorate in Camden he foolishly wasted around 1 million dollars for on-call specialists, when a full complement of the same specialists are based at Campbelltown Hospital, 20 minutes away. "10% of women will require specialist care during pregnancy and birth, however 100% need one to one support that enables them to enter parenthood positively and stay that way" said Ms Caines.

"Governments talk about early intervention programs, programs that merely act as a band-aid, and never look at the root of the problem," said Ms Caines.

"Parents are slammed when things go terribly wrong, let's make sure parents are supported before the baby is born and in that critical new period," said Ms Caines. "Million upon million is spent on disjointed programs that see women and children falling through the cracks. One carer can form the link and encourage parents to develop their own skills to cope," said Ms Caines.

"The New Zealand Government has embraced this model and the success has been outstanding. The death rate of indigenous babies has been halved. Currently in Australia, indigenous babies are 24 times more likely to die at birth than are babies born to non-indigenous mothers," said Ms Caines.

Not only have the outcomes been fantastic in New Zealand, the Government has saved millions of dollars. The Maternity services budget has been in decline for over 5 years.

The Maternity Coalition is an organisation of largely mothers who know how beneficial one to one care of a midwife can be. "Midwives visit women in their homes if they want, the care is about fitting in with them and supporting them, looking at the whole picture," said Ms Caines.

"The same money could have provided 330 women with 1 to 1 care and support for their entire pregnancy, birth and six weeks after the birth, care that helps women and families to cope with the demands and pressures of parenting, assisting them develop their own skills through a trusting personal relationship with 1 carer," said Ms Caines.

The sad fact is that if this care was promoted as a mainstream option it would reduce maternity spending by millions each year. "Care that has better outcomes for less money and the minister refuses to make a commitment, we want to know why," said Ms Caines.

The Maternity Coalition has support across 4 Area Health Services to implement this care for around 1000 women (86,000 women give birth in NSW each year). "All we need is the Minister to honour his support with a promise that if he is returned to office he will give women and children a better start in life."

Media contact: Justine Caines 0408 210273

P.O. Box 1190
Blackburn North,
Victoria 3130
Australia