‘Every option is being stripped away’: Territorians raise voices on maternity care crisis in Darwin

Families and healthcare workers in Darwin say the current maternity care system is costing young lives and options are disappearing, with some women sharing stories of traumatic loss.

A public forum discussing maternity care in Darwin was held on Saturday.

Territorian families and healthcare workers are warning government maternity care concerns are not going away especially as their options appear to be disappearing.

During a closed forum this week, hundreds of Territorians – including families, midwives, doctors and healthcare advocates – shared their experiences of maternity care across all sectors exposing issues and personal heartbreak.

The community action follows the closure of the Territory’s only private maternity ward at Darwin Private Hospital and changes made in August to the RDH Midwifery Group Practice.

The maternity ward at Darwin Private Hospital closed this year. Picture: DPH

In anonymised testaments, families and healthcare workers shared stories of loss, trauma and deep concern the current healthcare system is costing lives.

One parent described being placed in a post-natal ward surrounded by new parents with healthy babies just hours after losing her own bub.

A mum-of-two who had six pregnancies end in loss, said she tried to access the midwifery group practice at 11 to 12 weeks for early support before being told she was not eligible until 18 weeks.

“I lost that pregnancy at 14 weeks,” she said.

“Women like me fall through the cracks before care even starts.”

Others raised the life-changing problems that could occur from the severe lack of continuity of care on offer in the Top End such as serious health conditions being caught too late.

A parent said her baby was delivered stillborn at 37 weeks after being dismissed four times by different health professionals.

For her next pregnancy, she had proper monitoring and consistent care from professionals throughout her entire pregnancy and their baby survived.

“Continuity is not a luxury — it’s life or death,” they said.

One senior clinician said staff were also concerned by this and it could have deadly consequences.

“Yesterday’s problems become today’s emergencies because no one is responsible end to end,” they said.

“That costs lives.”

Tessa Czislowski is one of the organisers behind the community forum. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Tessa Czislowski, one of the organisers behind the forum has her own experience with maternity services in Darwin as a mum-of-two.

For the birth of her daughter in June this year after the private maternity ward was closed, Ms Czislowski was left labouring in a waiting room in Royal Darwin Hospital for three hours.

Despite the many confronting stories shared and issues raised, she said Saturday’s turnout had left them feeling hopeful.

“It was really, really positive experience,” she said.

“As hard as it was to sit and listen to some of the stories women had that were really devastating, it was still overall a positive experience.

“There was an energy in the room that we can make a change, make improvements and really that as a territory we can do better, much better than what we’re doing at the moment.”

Improvements and concerns raised

– Women are really concerned about the reducing options available to mums in the Northern Territory and that it feels like “every option is being stripped away”.

– Families want continuity of care to help build trust and spot issues more quickly improving outcomes. Even programs that are supposed to offer this are struggling to due to the high turnover of staff.

– Health care workers said workforce shortages, uncertain contracts and “casualisation” were causing the needed skilled midwives and obstetricians to work elsewhere, further decreasing available options.

– A better approach is needed for families who suffer the loss of child along with more staff receiving bereavement training.

– There is a lack of transparency and community consultation regarding changes within services. A consumer group to consult with NT Health on changes was proposed.

Attendees to Saturday’s event said there was no public consultation when changes were made to the Royal Darwin Hospital Midwifery Group Practice. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Another public forum will be held on Saturday, November 1, this time inviting government and media professionals along to try and action some of the changes raised.

“Our hope is that it will continue to have the issue ventilated and spoken about but also that we will get some traction,” Ms Czislowski said.

“The turnout shows this isn’t an issue that’s going to go away and if government don’t treat it with some level of seriousness, it’s going to continue to be a problem.”