Babies born on highway as pregnant mums forced to drive ‘frightening’ 93km
Babies are being born on the side of the Bruce Hwy with pregnant women forced on an ‘unpredictable’ 93km drive to hospital amid Gladstone’s maternity crisis, as workers say the unit is overwhelmed.
QLD News
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Pressure is mounting on Queensland Health to return Gladstone maternity services to full capacity with fears that Rockhampton birthing unit is now so under pressure that the obstetricians there will walk away, leaving the entire Central Queensland region in chaos.
Australian Medical Association Queensland president Maria Boulton reports that doctors are “fatigued, overworked and no longer want to work in Central Queensland”.
It was an obstetrician shortage that put Gladstone maternity unit on bypass in early July and since then pregnant women have been directed to Rockhampton to have their babies, 93 km away.
Some mums are not making it on time and babies are being born at the side of the potholed Bruce Highway.
Sources at Rockhampton Hospital report that their unit is overwhelmed delivering the babies of women who have been turned away from Gladstone, and staff are burnt out.
Gladstone has a population of about 65,000 and 600 babies are born there each year.
“I was in Rockhampton and Gladstone this week to talk to patients and doctors on the ground about their concerns, and it was confronting and distressing,” Dr Boulton said.
“Parents in Gladstone were left in the dark when the maternity unit went on bypass three months ago.
“Families did not know if they should relocate to Rockhampton for the final weeks of their pregnancy. Hospital staff had no information to give families.”
On Thursday, the government announced that in the first step of a phased approach to reintroduce birthing services at Gladstone, the hospital would offer elective Caesareans by appointment, starting on Friday.
“As we finalise recruitment of a full birthing team, we will be able to provide more services, with the next phase including a 24/7 service for emergency cases and the final phase a return to previous birthing services in Gladstone,” CQ Health chief executive Dr Emma McCahon said.
“The timeline for these next phases will depend on staff availability and we will inform the community as they are determined.”
But the AMAQ is not happy with the phasing approach and lack of clarity.
Gladstone MP and Regional Development Minister Glenn Butcher has been working tirelessly to bring services back to his city and even engaged a private recruitment company to lure obstetricians.
He told The Courier-Mail he was happy things were moving, and had faith that full services would return.
“We’ve secured a very experienced obstetrician and we hope to bring back to Gladstone obstetricians that were sent to Rocky,” he said.
“We know that the Rocky staff have been under tremendous pressure that is why it is so important to get Gladstone up and running.”
Dr McCahon acknowledged the efforts of the Rockhampton team in helping during the bypass.
Opposition health spokeswoman Ros Bates said: “One of the key findings of the Mackay Hospital report was the alarming number of women being pushed into having unnecessary caesarean sections.
“The government shouldn’t be backing expectant mothers into a corner like this – they should have a clear choice on where and how they give birth.”
Baby Matilda Childs was born on Sunday in the back of an ambulance five minutes from Rockhampton Hospital on the Bruce Highway.
Her mum Chloe went into labour at home in Ambrose in the early hours of October 9. Matilda was born at 5.35am.
“We nearly decided to drive ourselves to Rocky, which is close to an hour,” dad Greg said. “Thanks goodness we didn’t.
“Matilda is my second child but I would have simply had to wing it if Chloe had gone into labour in the car.
“We were lucky to get a great ambulance crew. It was the paramedic’s first birth and she was amazing.”
Greg followed the ambulance in his car.
“My labour was super-fast and thankfully there was no complications,” mum Chloe said.
“I would have been so scared if I’d been in the back of that ambulance and things had started to go wrong.
“The journey is too far for women who go into labour.
“Having a baby can be unpredictable and frightening, especially if it is your first child.”
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