Count the babies win: Queensland to introduce midwifery ratios

After years of campaigning by the Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union (QNMU) to have babies counted as separate patients on postnatal maternity wards, the state government has committed to introducing landmark minimum midwife-to-patient ratios across public hospitals. According to QNMU Secretary Kate Veach, under existing federal law, Queensland babies have not been counted as additional […]

Meet the NT Midwife of the Year

Earlier this year, midwife and childbirth educator Helen Nenke was named NT Midwife of the Year at the prestigious Northern Territory Nursing and Midwifery Excellence Awards 2023. Helen has worked with Anglicare NT’s Pandanus program for eight years, providing childbirth and early parenting education to young mothers under 25 and their partners, with her non-judgmental […]

NMBA partners with Burnet Institute to undertake midwifery workforce review

The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) has partnered with the Burnet Institute to conduct a comprehensive review of the midwifery workforce that will provide a map of the future supply and demand of midwives across the country. Amid rising concerns that growth is stalling in the midwifery profession, the in-depth review of the […]

Qld government commits $16 million following midwifery rally to address workforce issues

The Queensland government has pledged $16 million for regional, remote and rural Midwifery Group Practices (MGPs), as well as creating the role of a state Chief Midwife to help navigate the profession’s ongoing issues, following protest action outside Parliament House this week. The Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union (QNMU) and the Australian College of Midwives […]

Queensland midwives rally following unsafe workload audit

In an unprecedented action, Queensland midwives rallied outside Parliament House yesterday calling for urgent state government midwifery funding. It follows a recent audit of Queensland maternity inpatient wards which found single midwives are being left to care for up to 20 mothers and babies at a time. The Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union (QNMU, ANMF […]

‘Insider knowledge’ helps midwives get the maternity care and birth outcomes they want

Midwives’ professional experience, insider knowledge and ability to draw on colleagues and friends for support and care can help them get the maternity care and birth outcomes they want, a new Australian study has found. Exploring midwives’ childbirth preferences and outcomes when giving birth to their first child, after qualifying as a midwife, the national […]

Midwives under pressure

Midwives are facing significant issues with staffing across Australia. ANMF Branches have reported unmanageable workloads in postnatal wards, poor staffing skill mix, midwives being replaced with other health practitioners, burnout, decreasing job satisfaction, moral injury and vicarious trauma. There are concerns these issues are resulting in increased intrapartum intervention, insufficient and fragmented postnatal care and […]