Portland District Health
Ms BRITNELL (South-West Coast) (14:17): My question is to the Minister for Health. Last week Portland District Health suspended its maternity service. This has left dozens of expectant mothers and their families in limbo, having to travel well over an hour to Warrnambool or Hamilton to have their babies. Tiarna is an impacted mum and said:
Due start of may and now very stressed I won’t make it to warni as my first daughters labour was 1 hr and 30 mins.
Stacey is another, who said:
Due on 1 may with my first baby, absolutely terrified of giving birth on the side of the road.
Why has the government shut the Portland hospital’s maternity service, and how is it fair on these women and their families that they cannot access the health care they need to have for their babies to be born in Portland?
Mr FOLEY (Albert Park—Minister for Health, Minister for Ambulance Services, Minister for Equality) (14:18): Can I thank the member for South-West Coast for her question. The premise of her question is somewhat incorrect. The Victorian government’s Department of Health has not shut Portland’s maternity services. What the Portland health service has done, as a result of the inability of that service to hire midwives, is temporarily suspend service delivery—in a similar position to midwifery shortages right across the country. What they have done in terms of the specifics of the cases that the honourable member has highlighted, in the statement from Portland health, which is a fine and outstanding health delivery service, to quote them, is to temporarily pause their birthing suite services for a period of time whilst they address that midwifery shortage. The health service will continue to provide antenatal classes. It will continue to provide birthing classes and domiciliary care during this time. It will make sure that it provides certainty, safety and support for all the expecting families—there are, in the period under immediate review, some 10 women due to give birth over the next 2 to 3 weeks, with a further 21 women scheduled for birth over the next three months. All the women and families affected by this change are being carefully case managed by the Portland District Health service, and I have nothing but strong support for them. The Department of Health will continue to work with them as indeed will South West and all the other healthcare networks to make sure that this issue of shortages of midwifery professionals in that area are addressed as soon as possible and that Portland can get back to the important work that they and many other regional health services need to deliver.
Ms BRITNELL (South-West Coast) (14:20): As the Premier said about country health on Tuesday:
The fact that you are a long way from Melbourne does not mean you should have to settle for anything other than excellence.
Why did the government fail to alert staff, doctors or even mothers about the closure of Portland maternity services to the extent that women giving birth turned up to the Portland, only to be turned away and sent an hour away to Hamilton?
Mr FOLEY (Albert Park—Minister for Health, Minister for Ambulance Services, Minister for Equality) (14:20): I thank the member for South-West Coast for her supplementary question, and again I would take issue with the language that those opposite use to overstate this arrangement. All of these women and their families have been contacted and supported by Portland District Health to manage their way through a staff shortage in the short term. It is highly regrettable that there is a nationwide shortage of midwife professionals, which we have seen as a result of our borders being closed for two years and the normal pipeline of recruitment right across the country, particularly in our regional and rural community health services, having been affected in many areas and particularly when it comes to maternal and childcare health.
Ms Britnell: On a point of order, Speaker, that was debating the question. There is no way that it was reasonable to state that. Or was it misleading the Parliament? Perhaps my point of order is on misleading the Parliament. There has been no advertising of any work for any midwives in the last two years at all.
The SPEAKER: The member for South-West Coast should know that that is not a point of order. The minister has concluded his answer.