The ABC recently did a story on our midwives within Joan Kirner Women’s & Children’s, as an inside look into one of Melbourne’s busiest maternity wards. Our midwives work day and night to deliver thousands of babies every year. The story covered the issues being faced across the country regarding midwifery workforce shortages.
The pandemic has also exacerbated many pressures that were starting to emerge before 2020, says Tanya Farrell, the Director of Maternity Services at Western Health. “Like all services, we have had challenges in attracting midwives because the pool of midwives available to us lessened,” she says.
After a challenging few years, workforce pressures have eased at Joan Kirner with the return of healthcare workers from overseas, following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.
The hospital has also significantly increased the number of graduate midwives it accepts every year – from 20 to 70 – and introduced clinical educators to ensure its junior midwives are well supported.
Offering different models of care, including midwifery group practice and a home birth program, has also helped to attract and retain staff, maternity services director Tanya Farrell says.
“Our ultimate aim is to make sure that midwives can contribute to the work that they love for as many hours as they can,” she says.
“The challenge, however, is I still have to run a 24/7 service. Women need midwives to be here when the sun goes down.”
Check out the full ABC story here or watch the TV report which was aired on 6 August 2023.