May 18, 2003

Giving birth in Alice Springs

Yesterday I was shown around the Alice Springs Maternity Unit, which was a delightful experience. The whole hospital has been recently renovated and I was initially taken with their colour scheme - the top floor is done in blue shades (the sky) the second floor in green tones (the plants) and the ground floor in browns and ochres (the earth). There is lots of aboriginal art everywhere too, appropriate for their major client base.

The maternity unit has around 800 births each year. The majority of women giving birth there are now Aboriginal, probably a reflection of the generally falling birth rate amongst Caucasian women in Australia. Many of these Aboriginal women come in from outlying areas, are very young and may have underlying health conditions that can complicate pregnancy and birth.

The birth unit has 16 beds and 4 birth rooms. Each has an en-suite bathroom with either a huge bath or a shower. The rooms have double beds and birth balls and birth stools are in each room. Variable lighting, a variety of furniture and home like decor all add up to very congenial surroundings.

The post natal area has either single rooms or double bedded wards. At first the Aboriginal women didn’t want to be in single bed rooms but the installation of a TV and a phone did the trick! The hospital runs a continuous program of educational videos on breastfeeding, health and parenting videos on the TV as a clever way to reach its captive audience. There are a variety of different “skin groups” amongst the Aboriginal population in the Alice, and it is important to accommodate appropriate women together post-natally, if friction is to be avoided. This sometimes means daily shuffling of beds as women come and go in the unit.

The birth outcomes are outstanding. This is very much a midwifery unit, with a close knit team of midwives who rotate through all areas. Given the nature of this isolated town of 30,000 people, at times they must deal with all kinds of obstetric emergencies as well as regular pregnancy and birth, so these midwives become multi-skilled. Working here is a wonderful way to obtain wide experience in a very friendly and woman centred environment.

Just outside Alice Springs is Pine Gap, a US operated space tracking facility that has brought around 600 American families to the area. I asked how the American women found this midwifery care, which is very different from the medicalised US approach to birth. I was told that they usually come in “demanding their epidural” and discover they can birth well without any drugs, drips or monitors. Most then make a deliberate effort to complete their families in Alice Springs before they return to the US because they love the empowering experience offered in the unit.

I think this says it all about rural birth in Australia - experienced, competent midwives, flexible options for birth, impressive birth outcomes and new mothers empowered through normal births. It is a wonderful model and one we should emulate across the country.

Posted by andrea at May 18, 2003 09:09 AM

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