Reassurance over safety of NZ maternity care
Joint statement from the Ministry of Health, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the College of Midwives.
Media Release
30 September 2016
The Ministry of Health, midwives and obstetricians have moved to reassure
New Zealanders that maternity services in this country are robust.
Questions have been raised about the safety of care following recent
research looking at differences in outcomes for babies for those with
midwife-led care compared to those with medical-led care.
The Ministry of Health¹s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Andrew Simpson, says,
The study and its findings require further investigation, and the
Ministry has already referred it to the National Maternity Monitoring
Group for consideration.
However, it is very important to reassure New Zealanders that the
maternity system we have here is safe.
The study itself backs up what we already know that New Zealand has low
rates of adverse outcomes for both mothers and babies, and which are
similar to countries such as Australia and the United Kingdom.
While our maternity care is good, there is room for improvement in any
system. We are all working towards the same goal which is the best
outcomes for mothers and babies.²
The Chair of the New Zealand Committee of the Royal Australian and New
Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG), Dr Ian
Page, says, ³The maternity model in New Zealand means women have free
access to whatever level of care they need be that a general
practitioner, a midwife, or an obstetrician if required.
There are measures in place to monitor outcomes, including local
maternity quality and safety programmes which have been operating in all
District Health Boards since 2012.
We need to keep the findings of this latest study in perspective, and
remember that starting a pregnancy with a midwife as Lead Maternity Carer
(LMC) does not mean all the care is given by the midwife alone.
The study states that differences in outcomes for babies for those with
midwife-led care compared to those with medical-led care equate to about 5
per 1000 babies with a low Apgar score, and 31Ž2 per 1000 for hypoxia/birth
asphyxia and neonatal encephalopathy.
These numbers are reassuringly small, but we should still investigate to
see if they can be reduced further.
However the study does not (and does not claim to) show that the model of
care or caregiver was the cause of the differences,² says Dr Page.
College of Midwives Chief Executive, Karen Guilliland says, ³The maternity
system team is made up of LMCs in the community, hospital midwives,
obstetricians and paediatricians, all working together in the best
interests of women and their babies.
Outcomes for both mothers and babies are very good and are improving year
on year, as demonstrated by all of the monitoring data routinely reported.
We are all focused on ensuring that what is already a world class
maternity system continues to improve.²
ENDS
Media contacts:
Ministry of Health Senior Media Advisor, Erina Marwick 021 428 067
RANZCOG Dr Ian Page 021 986 471
College of Midwives Media Advisor, Maria Scott 021 329 405 OR Media
Advisor, Ali Jones 027 247 3112