"Second pregnancy"

I had my first daughter through MGP 5 at KEMH and loved the experience from start to end. Naturally I wanted to repeat this with my second child.

Initially, MGP was full when I applied but a vacancy arose and I was taken in to MGP 4. I was incredibly relieved to know I would have a midwifery team to call or text when I needed them. Knowing that someone who knew my name and my face was going to follow me through the pregnancy was exactly what I needed. It is something I think every woman needs.

For me, the beauty of MGP is that you are at a middle-ground between hospital-led care and a Family Birth Centre. You have a midwifery team like you do in a FBC but you have the facilities of a hospital birth.

You become close to your midwives like in a FBC, rather than seeing whoever is on duty at the hospital for your appointment. I believe the relationship I developed with my midwives contributed to me having wonderful birth experiences, two natural births with very little medical intervention. My mind and body could be at ease knowing that I was in safe hands with women who had been with me from day one.

I would opt for MGP for a low-risk pregnancy time and time again. It is unfortunate that not all hospitals have this as an option. Our suburb’s catchment hospital is potentially changing which will mean we are no longer in KEMH catchment and will not be eligible for their MGP program. This makes me wonder what kind of care options we will have if we have more children. After such wonderful experiences with MGP at KEMH I can’t imagine doing anything else!