"Birth of my First Child"

I was lucky enough to be placed into a Midwifery Group Practice (MGP4) model of care at King Edward Memorial hospital when I was referred by my doctor for my first pregnancy in late 2018. I had no idea what to expect when going into the hospital, as most of my other family members had opted to birth in the private system. 

The model of continuous care with a dedicated midwife gave me real peace of mind and assurance every step of the way. I knew I could call my midwife at any time if I needed to, and I felt extremely supported in all my decision making through the pregnancy. It really helped to know that I would have someone deliver my baby that had been with me through the majority of my pregnancy. 

The fact I got to meet nearly all the midwives in the group also meant that I felt supported even on the few occasions my midwife was unavailable. As a healthy, low risk pregnancy, the fact I got to go through my whole pregnancy and delivery of my baby with only my midwives was a real dream - I had no unnecessary medical intervention and was given all the time my body needed to deliver my baby naturally. I delivered a healthy baby by water birth last month, supported by two midwives from MGP4. 

Additionally, the home visits by my midwife over the following 4 days was a real comfort as my spouse and I settled into life as new parents. I cannot thank the MGP4 team enough for all that they did for our family, we will definitely be returning! I would love to know what the government and hospitals are doing to support maintaining and increasing access to this model of care for women, given their wonderful performance and positive outcomes for women and babies?