Women’s & Maternal Health
Program Coordinator
– Anna Frieling
P: 08 8971 9350 | M: 0438 521 980 | E:
anna.frieling@kwhb.com.au
The past year focused on consolidating the work already commenced with providing sustainable, effective and safe antenatal care in the KWHB remote communities. As with previous years, there is a continued shortage of health centre staff with midwifery qualifications. Therefore the requirement to support female members of the health centre teams to feel confident in providing antenatal care is essential. The women’s and maternal health program is therefore supported by a Women’s and Maternal Health Coordinator, the Woman’s Business Manual (WBM) and remote GP’s.
2009
and Beyond
Antenatal care model
The model of providing clinical leadership and support has been found to be best achieved by having a highly mobile Womens’ and Maternal Health Coordinator. Developing a rapport with remote staff provides a forum were RAN’s and AWH are aware that the MWHC can be contacted to explore any issues that arise. The Senior Medical Officer also provides clinical guidance for referring high risk antenatal women, and frequently communication between RAN’s, MWHC and SMO problem solves to enable that certain pregnant women are directed to consultant care.
The KWHB model of care for antenatal women promotes a sustainability of the remote workforce with clinical support and leadership. Many of the RANs caring for the antenates can now freely discuss global issues in maternity care; there is a heightened awareness of issues that affect all women in the delivering of safe and effective care. In the previous year, two RAN’s have decided to return to study and are enrolled in midwifery study
This year, a relatively stable RAN and AHW workforce provided a solid backdrop for ‘continuity of caregiver’ for remote indigenous women receiving antenatal care in the community health centres, enabling remote women develop rapport with health centre staff. This trust helps to ensure that the women will engage in antenatal care, going a long way to ensure optimal obstetric outcomes.
Lajamanu Health Centre is one which has a staff member overseeing the maternal health program at the health centre with strong support from the (KWHB Maternal Health Program Coordinator). With nearly 30 babies born this year the program has worked well.
Weekly Women’s & Maternal Health Collaboratives
Maternal collaboratives have continually evolved over the course of the previous 12 months, as remote staff have gained confidence providing care. This has been evidenced by the sophisticated questioning that has arisen during the course of the weekly collaboratives. Maternal collaboratives addresses gaps in service and provides some education for all new primary health staff members.
Women only Sessions
The enabling of female RAN’s to complete the Well Woman’s course to provide pap smears, and the subsequent informal ‘womans’ afternoons’ where the clinic is designated as ‘women only’ has been a way for RAN’s to engage with community women with a strong primary health care message about staying health and strong for your family and community. Screening afternoons were held at Kildurk, Lajamanu and Yarralin.
Women’s & Maternal Health Promotion/Education
The Healthy Young Families (HYF) Project aims to provide consistent messaging around child and maternal health. The topics and content have been selected through consultation with both service providers and community members. The Health Leadership Group has provided strong leadership round the quality assurance of the content and a HYF reference group has ensured cultural safety through regular reference group sessions. The materials are then checked again by the Ngumpin reference group. A range of materials have been developed from this content, including community workshops guides, pictorial resources and the talking templates, an electronic resource for health centre staff. This consistency aims to reduce miscommunication around child and maternal health across the region.
Women’s and maternal health promotion pamphlets, booklets, DVDs on health information and messages are placed in all community health centres, to ensure that information is up to date and staff are using the same resources, again to ensure the information is consistent. All resources are reviewed by the Ngumpin Reference Group to ensure they are appropriate and culturally safe.
Commencing in July 2008, the Timber Creek Jarlig Gujarding Mothercraft Project began in response to the need identified by an Aboriginal Health Worker to provide early parenting information to community women. With the support of a locally based project coordinator, the program aimed to support Community Support Workers (CSWs) in two communities, Bulla and Myatt, to provide a sustainable community based ‘early parenting’ program for post primary girls, pregnant women and mothers of infants.
In consultation with female community elders, Aboriginal Health Workers (AHWs) and the health centre team, the weekly program has built on cultural knowledge, capacity and awareness of health and lifestyle issues currently impacting communities. The program was rolled out over 12 weeks.
An evaluation was conducted by the Healthy Young Families (HYF) Coordinator and undertaken within a Participatory Action Research (PAR) Framework. A report, an outcome of the evaluation activities, was used to inform, through the key recommendations, future JG sessions and the development of sessions into modules that can be offered to other communities.
Timber Creek Health Centre staff report that this is the program they think succeeded most comprehensively, which was a fantastic success and greatly beneficial and needed within Timber Creek and all communities.
The range of topics also complements the SNAPE templates on Communicare that have been linked to the antenatal template throughout the region.
Core of Life
Core of Life training looks at the impact of adolescent pregnancy on the individual, couple and family life and promotes a culture of encouraging the individual to actively think about choices. COL however, does explore the impact of life styles upon pregnancy, and the implication to foetal wellbeing. The need for antenatal attendance at the health centre is therefore highlighted heavily during the education setting, and also the need for attendance to the health service once pregnancy may be suspected.