What does collaboration look like with MIGA

The Hon Nicola Roxon MP - Minister for Health and Ageing has announced that MIGA has been awarded the contract to be the sole provider under a new Government supported Scheme to provide Professional Indemnity Insurance to privately practising midwives MIGA - the Medical Insurance Group A full time equivalent will cost you $7500.00 per year. (The Australian College of Midwives will also have a competitive insurance so watch this space)

This insurance company has outlined what collaboration will look like: here are the exerts from the document on collaboration to read the whole document click this link;

A Collaborative Arrangement must provide for:
- consultation between you and an Obstetric Specified Medical Practitioner;
- referral of a patient to a Specified Medical Practitioner; and
- transfer of a patent's care to an Obstetric Specified Medical Practitioner.

A Collaborative Arrangement means one of the following types of arrangements:
- a patient is referred in writing to you for Midwifery Services by a Specified Medical Practitioner;

or
- an arrangement in writing between you and one or more Specified Medical
Practitioners which provides for consultation between you and the Medical
Practitioner(s), referral of patients to the Medical Practitioner(s), transfer of a
patient's care to the Medical Practitioner(s) and which is signed by you and the
Medical Practitioner(s);
or
- you have met each of the following requirements for each patient:

- you have recorded the name of the Specified Medical Practitioner who is (or will
be) collaborating with you in your written records;

- you have told the patient that you will be collaborating with a Specified Medical
Practitioner and recorded this in your written records;

- you have an acknowledgement by the named Medical Practitioner that they will
be collaborating with you in the patient's care and you have recorded this in
Your written records (this acknowledgement may apply to more than one
patient);

- you have recorded in your written records plans for the circumstances in which
you will consult with an Obstetric Specified Medical Practitioner; refer the
patient to a Specified Medical Practitioner; transfer the patient's care to an
Obstetric Specified Medical Practitioner;

- you have recorded any consultation or other communication between you and
an Obstetric Specified Medical Practitioner about the patient's care in your
written records;

- you have recorded any referral of the patient by you to a Specified Medical
Practitioner in Your written records;
- you have recorded any transfer by you of the patient's care to an Obstetric
Specified Medical Practitioner in your written records;

- when you give a copy of the hospital booking letter (however described) for the
patient to a named Medical Practitioner, you have recorded the acknowledgement that the named Medical Practitioner has received a copy of the hospital booking letter in your written records;

- when you give a copy of the patient's maternity care plan prepared by you to a
named Medical Practitioner, You have recorded in your written records the
acknowledgement that the named Medical Practitioner has received the copy of
the maternity care plan;

- if you request diagnostic imaging or pathology services for the patient, you have
recorded when you give the results of those services to a named Medical
Practitioner in your written records; and

- you have given a discharge summary (however described) at the end of your
care for a patient to the named Medical Practitioner and the patient's usual
general practitioner and recorded this in Your written records.

I will leave you to ponder on this and comment.....

cheers Pauline

Time for Bunbury Midwives to respond!

The Bunbury Mail headline written by Kaitlyn offer reads "More women risking Bunbury homebirths"This headline is just purely 'scaremongering' and in light of the recent release of the governments Maternity Services Review Report, which suggest that women should have improved choice, and expanding the role of the midwife.

I think the article endeavors to present a balanced view, however, it does not at any point have the view of 'the midwife' it does consider the view of the obstetrician.
In light of the Maternity Review I think it is time the media recognised the value of the profession of 'midwifery'(hence we have the Nurses & Midwives Act 2006) and sort the opinion of the Southwest Midwives or the Australian College of Midwives to further balance this article. It is sad to see that an obstetrician is negating the woman's' right of choice and slamming this as 'putting her baby at risk'. This woman has made an intelligent, informed choice of how she would like to birth her baby and this choice should be respected not criticised.


The article goes on to say that

"Between 2003 and 2007 there were 70 homebirths recorded in the South West by the health department, up from 13 performed in 2003 to 20 in 2007.....and that there were no deaths from homebirths in the South West between 2003 and 2007". Did the Dr quote the amount of traumas associated with a birth in the hospital?

So please explain to me why then have these women put their babies at risk? oh that's right

Bunbury's gynaecologist Dr Ron Jewell said mothers were putting themselves and their babies at risk.

With what evidence is the Dr basing this statement on?
“People are looking at their choice rather than safety,” Dr Jewell said. Dr Jewell has not once commented on the services or the ability of the very professional midwives of the Southwest, where is his attempt to be collaborative with his colleagues?
All midwives are trained to be able to recognise the abnormal and deal with any emergency that may arise.

Thank goodness the the trusted consumer, Bunbury mother Megan Pelusey disagrees.

Mrs Pelusey gave birth to her first child Georgia at home in 2006 and with baby number two on the way her family is preparing for another homebirth with the help of a trusted midwife, her husband Marcus and Georgia, 2.“I’m a private person and it’s a nice way to have it in your home and this time my two year old will see it all,” Mrs Pelusey said.

Mrs Pelusey said she felt women with low risk of complications could have safe homebirths when supported by a midwife with the right equipment.
“I had continuity of care with my midwife, I had regular visits throughout the whole pregnancy, (the midwife was there) during the birth and I had after birth care and you still see a doctor anyway,” Mrs Pelusey said.
She said she was not nervous about complications.
“The midwife has all the right equipment like oxygen if it is needed and we are not very far from the hospital if something happens.”

I must say I am sadden by this article, the headline, could have been a more positive one, 'Homebirths successful in the Southwest', 'More women choose midwifery led care in the Southwest' - but I guess it just may not have the same impact.

I urge the media to give midwives a fair go! find out what it is we do? don't just take the word of an obstetrician, this is about collaborative work, we can and do work together, let midwives provide continuity of care, give women the choices they want!, it really is not to much to ask for.

Infomidwife.