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Peel Maternity & Family Practice: Caring for mothers and babies
The practice is a general practice and provides care for only maternity patients and their
babies in the immediate postpartum period. The practice aims to provide a coordinated and
holistic team approach, with a small family atmosphere. The practice provides comprehensive
management from conception through the antenatal periods, delivery and postnatal check ups.
The practice also provides contraceptive advice and management including Implanon and IUD
insertion and removal, as well as PAP smears, STD screening and other minor gynaecological
procedures and advice. The practice consists of GP obstetricians and midwives. The GP
obstetricians attend the delivery at the local hospital and provide care in hospital after delivery
along with the hospital employed midwives. The midwives at the practice also work part time
on the maternity unit, so are at times able to care for the patients in labour too. Other doctors
may assist with sessions from time to time and a dietician is available for private appointments.
The midwives provide much of the day-to-day care with the doctors in a more supervisory role,
becoming more involved if problems develop.
Midwifery models of care
The focus of midwifery care is to provide continuity of care and carer and form partnerships with
women and their families as they prepare for childbirth. This includes the care of the healthy
woman prior to pregnancy and during all phases of childbearing and early parenting. The midwife
establishes partnerships with medical personnel and allied health professionals as needed to
facilitate the best care for a mother and her baby. The primary midwife continues to provide
midwifery care to women even when specialist medical intervention is required (The Australian
College of Midwives, 2006A, Department of Health England, 2004).
Midwifery group practice (sometimes
known as caseload midwifery care)
Midwifery models of maternity care can be accessed through self-referral or with a referral from
their GP in early pregnancy. Midwifery models of care can be provided in group practices, caseload
models or team midwifery. Below are descriptions of the dominant models of midwifery care.
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Midwifery group practice enables women to be cared for by the same
midwife (primary midwife) or a small group of midwives throughout their
pregnancy, during childbirth and in the early weeks at home with a new
baby (Government of South Australia, 2007).
Midwifery group practices can operate from a community setting.
Community Midwifery Program WA (CMP) is an example of a caseload model
that offers women the opportunity to give birth at home and in collaboration
with other health providers from local maternity units or birth centres.
The CMP also offers domicillary services for women who choose to use the
service and birth in hospital.
The majority of antenatal and postnatal care is provided in a woman’s
home or in clinics with the place of birth being dictated by the woman
and/or her health needs or those of her baby (either hospital, home or birth
centre) (The Australian College of Midwives, 2006A).