"Birthing in rural hospital in MGP care"

I was very concerned about birthing in a hospital as I had originally wanted to birth at home. I was offered a position in one of the first intakes in the MGP program and could not have been happier with the genuine care and support we received to give birth to our first child.

Through the MGP program and continuity of care I was able to develop a genuine relationship with my midwife and develop trust and mutual understanding, this lead to a more positive birth environment and I believe, better woman centred care and outcomes. It is imperative for women to trust their birthing team, as it is those who are there when we are at our most vulnerable and on the most important journey of our lives. Thankfully, our midwife, Laura, always went above and beyond to accommodate our wishes to ensure we had a positive birth experience and I couldn’t express my gratitude enough to her and the team in the Karratha health campus. 

I truly believe there should be investment to ensure the MGP care model is made available to all women birthing in the public system as the results, outcomes and feedback are second to none. I’d also like to commend the Karratha maternity ward on its facilities made available for women in remote and regional locations. The birth suite was beautiful and the midwives worked hard to make it feel inviting and homey. I feel it would be good to have more information regarding breastfeeding. 

We also undertook the positive birth classes leading into birth and found them very useful in our birthing journey. I would like to commend WACHS for making this freely available to the public. Through this information, continuity of care and facilities, I was able to have a beautiful physiological birth without pain relief or unnecessary intervention.