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EMPAS Clinic

Posted By peppermq98

"EMPAS Clinic"

About: Swan Hill District Hospital / Midwifery Department

(as the patient),

I just wanted to express my gratitude for the team at the EMPAS clinic in Swan Hill. I am nearly due with my third baby (6th pregnancy) and truly believe that if not for this clinic, my pregnancy would have been more stressful than necessary.

I had a rough start to this pregnancy and after a trip to Emergency I was referred to the EMPAS clinic. I found the combination of midwife, nurse and obstetrician to be amazing at these appointments and found that I was able to get early pregnancy advice that gave me comfort, knowledge and took some of the stress about another miscarriage away as I felt I had a team supporting me.

I knew that if this pregnancy went the same as my last 3 that I would be able to use their services for support post miscarriage and that in itself was a relief. My previous experiences with miscarriage in Swan Hill have been terrible to say the least and I am glad that this team saw a need for support during the early stages of pregnancy and pregnancy loss and I am very glad to have been able to utilise the clinic during the beginning of this pregnancy. I appreciate the way this clinic is being run, and I hope it continues in our community. A special shout out also goes to Beth who I saw the most and who made sure I had every script, every appointment and every piece of information I could need at each of my visits, while being incredibly supportive.

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Responses

Response from Chloe Keogh, Interim CEO, Executive Offices, Swan Hill District Health 8 hours ago
We have made a change
Chloe Keogh
Interim CEO, Executive Offices,
Swan Hill District Health

Overall responsibility for the running of the health service, reports to the Board of Management. Interim for 7 months while they recruit permanently to the CEO role.

Submitted on 16/03/2026 at 1:43 PM
Published on Care Opinion Australia at 4:42 PM

picture of Chloe Keogh

Dear peppermq98,

This is such wonderful feedback, and I really thank you for taking the time to write about your journey and how this clinic has helped you during this pregnancy.

The Early to Mid Pregnancy Assessment Service ( EMPAS) clinic came about after issues with women having health issues in their early to mid stages of their pregnancy and they would attend Emergency or the GP clinic, and then have to have follow up care and see a different person on their follow up appointment and start their often sensitive story afresh with a new person. At the time we could see that SHDH was seeing about 85 women a year with health issues in their early to mid pregnancy time, and this was a lot of women having a difficult time getting the care that they needed.

In August 2025 we started this EMPAS clinic to support women to have this connected care. The clinic provides care to women and pregnant people under 20 weeks gestation who are experiencing complications in pregnancy. This includes but is not limited to:

• Threatened miscarriage
• Confirmed miscarriage (and then the management of this)
• Pregnancy of unknown origin
• Hyperemesis Gravidarum
• Pregnancy following multiple miscarriages
• Pregnancy following stillbirth
• Follow up care following any procedures required for any presentations
• Termination of pregnancy
• Continuity of care from a known caregiver
• Emotional support and provision of support packs
• Extended miscarriage options support, including provision of options not frequently provided to families for early miscarriage (examples: Births Deaths and Marriages certificate for early pregnancy loss)

Since we started- in these 6 months the clinic has supported over 80 women for this specialised care- double the rate that we had anticipated. This shows us that it is a really needed service in this community

We are so pleased to be able to offer this service, and as an executive who has been part of these discussions, and the Business Case to start this clinic and looking at these women's presentations it is fantastic to have been able to make a change that is helping women have a better experience during such a difficult time of their lives.

I know there is a whole team behind the care provided through the EMPAS clinic, however I will certainly ensure that midwifery, the SHPHMC (GP clinic) and Beth all know of your note of thanks on this platform.

Again, thank you for taking the time to explain your experience.

Kind Regards

Chloe

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