Six babies are lost to stillbirth every day, while rates of stillbirth in Australia have not dropped for two decades, according to the Still Birth foundation.
On Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, the government announced the release of a new package that provides education and awareness measures to reduce rates of stillbirth.
The Safer Baby Bundle resources, which delivers new clinical guidelines and practical tools, will soon be available for health professionals and pregnant women across Australia.
The resource was developed principally by the Centre for Research Excellence (CRE) in Stillbirth at the University of Queensland and will be provided to hospitals in selected areas.
The Safer Baby Bundle provides evidence based recommendations in five key risk areas:
- Detection and management of impaired fetal growth.
- Awareness and management of decreased fetal movement.
- Advising women on safe sleeping positions.
- Supporting women to stop smoking.
- Better timing of birth for women with risk factors.
Stillbirth Foundation Australia CEO, Leigh Brezler, said the Safer Baby Bundle will work to save more lives and ensure families get the information they need, when they need it most.
“We believe that with current information available on stillbirth prevention, we can reduce the rate of stillbirth by 30%,” Ms Brezler said.
“The interventions outlined in the Safer Baby Bundle will go a long way to getting us there, ultimately reducing the incidence and impact of stillbirth.”
Ms Brezler said that by better communicating with families about the risks of stillbirths we can ensure more healthy pregnancies in Australia.
“This is all about getting accurate and consistent information to expectant mothers, ensuring they are aware of the risks and what can be done to mitigate them,” Ms Brezler said.
“By standardising these elements of maternity care, we provide health workers and clinicians with consistent messaging around managing risks during pregnancy, which will improve maternity care for families into the future.”
