A report on maternity services in rural and remote Queensland is advocating more training for bush midwives, collaborative care for expecting mums and ministerial approval for heath service changes.
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A new training fund to allow bush midwives and doctors to rotate through bigger hospitals to keep their skills current will be established in a bid to lure and keep more clinicians in bush hospitals.
It is one of the key actions Health Minister Steven Miles introduced in response to the Rural Maternity Taskforce report, released in June.
The report engaged in five stakeholder engagement forums including North West Hospital and Health Service, to understand the safety and accessibility of rural and remote maternity services.
"One of the challenges for health services is offering services in towns where there is a very low number of births, it's very hard to keep your skills current," Mr Miles said.
"We are proposing a trial where, for example, a midwife from Chinchilla could spend a few weeks a year living and working in Toowoomba or the Gold Coast or even Melbourne to make sure they see enough births."
Mr Miles said $500,000 would be allocated to the trial, which could be expanded if popular.
He anticipated some clinicians might appreciate a chance to spend part of their year in a bigger city - while ensuring services can be maintained in their absence.
"We want to attract more staff to regional areas, and if this helps even better," he said.
Mr Miles said he would require health services to secure special ministerial approval for planned changes.
"We will continue to task health boards with determining what services are delivered where, but given the level of community interest I think it's appropriate I or whoever is minister can say no," he said.
"I think the need for ministerial approval will ensure health services do everything they can to keep vital rural and remote health services open."
Queensland's Hospital and Health services will now have to consider how rural and remote maternity services in their HHS can be improved and strengthened.
The Taskforce's rural maternity consumer representative Bec Waqanikalou said the report was a huge win for rural and remote communities.
"From a consumer's point-of-view, I'm happy to see two things from the report," she said.
"One, there is the security that further services won't be lost without consultation with the consumers and community, and the final decision will be scrutinised by the Minister and two, there'll be opportunity for new services to be provided closer to a woman's home, their family and their support network."
Rural Doctors Association of Queensland President, Dr Clare Walker welcomed the minister's response to the report.
"RDAQ had been advocating for an effective 'collaborative care' model that halts maternity ward closures and allows for others to reopen since 2005," Dr Walker said.
"RDAQ believes maternity care should be delivered to women and their families, as close to home as is safe and possible, by a collaborative team with strong governance structures in place."
It is unclear at this stage what direct changes will be made for North West patients.
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Samantha Campbell
Samantha Campbell (nee Walton) has worked for regional and rural publications across New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. She is currently writing for the North Queensland Register based in North West Queensland. Email: samantha.campbell@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Samantha Campbell (nee Walton) has worked for regional and rural publications across New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. She is currently writing for the North Queensland Register based in North West Queensland. Email: samantha.campbell@austcommunitymedia.com.au
