Hornsby Kuring-Gai Hospital Midwifery Group Practice (MPG) recently celebrated 11 years of the maternity service.
MGP is a continuity of carer program whereby each midwife cares for approximately 40 women per year, guiding them through the antenatal period, being on-call during their pregnancy and for labour and birth, and providing support at home for up to two weeks postnatally.
The service is renowned for its enhanced outcomes for women and babies with increased normal birth rates, reduced incidences of epidurals and increased satisfaction for women.
MGP midwives (pictured) Kim Baker, Jen Dixon, Heidi Partington, Julie Laherty, Katrina Allen, and midwifery unit manager Nicola Duffy recently came together with the families of last year’s births to celebrate another year of MGP care.
Kim said the opportunity to celebrate another year of service and catch up with the families was a great way for the MGP team to be able to check in with mothers and their children.
“It’s really great catching up with the women a year later and seeing how much their babies have grown,” she said.
“They love coming to the birthday party as much as we love having it because they really value the model and the continuity it gives them.”
Both women and midwives value the program as they get to know each other through the course of a pregnancy, which enables the expecting mothers to have a known midwife at their birth.
Kim said the journey the midwives are able to go on with expecting mothers makes the experience a special one.
“The best thing about being an MGP midwife is getting to know the women during their pregnancy and birth, particularly when they return for subsequent babies,” she said.
“It means we develop really lovely relationships with them.”