The ACT Greens will deliver Canberra's first co-designed, midwife-led and separate from hospital freestanding birth centre, and expand midwife-led continuity of care to all who want it if re-elected.
ACT Greens MLA for Ginninderra Jo Clay said the government needs to provide more choice, to empower women and birthing people choose the care and place of birth they need and want.
"Birth is not an illness. Yet the vast majority of women and birthing people currently have no choice but to give birth inside a hospital," Ms Clay said.
"The ACT Greens want all women and pregnant people to have the ability to choose the type of care and place of birth that is right for them. But currently our two hospital-based birth centres have hundreds on the waitlist.
"The Canberra community has been calling for a freestanding birth centre for almost a hundred years and it's time we built one, in addition to the two hospital-based birth centres that already exist.
"In traditional hospital based models of care, people will see many different care providers throughout their journey which can be exhausting, isolating and possibly lead to a more negative birth experience.
"Some women and birthing people will want to choose to birth in a hospital, and that's great, but for those who want to birth in a home-like environment with a known midwife, Canberrans simply need more choice."
If re-elected, the ACT Greens will:
- Deliver Canberra's first co-designed and midwife-led freestanding birth centre on the northside, fully separate to the hospital campus.
- Expand access to midwife-led continuity of care to give everyone who wants it the ability to choose it.
Greens candidate for Yerrabi, Soëlily Consen-Lynch, said the ACT Greens' plan better supports women and birthing people, and facilitates midwives to work to their full scope of practice, which will help attract and retain this crucial workforce.
"Our plan respects and values midwives and will lead to more job satisfaction. We know that midwives want to work in this model of care," Ms Consen-Lynch said.
"Midwives have a unique and important set of skills to support women and birthing people, and their babies, with the best start. But nationally we are struggling to recruit and retain skilled midwives.
"The freestanding birth centre recognises, trusts and values these skills which will attract and retain more midwives for Canberra."
The Greens' plan to deliver a truly freestanding birth centre, separate to any hospital campus, is available on the ACT Greens website.
