Closing the Gap in Indigenous maternity care

Ngarrama antenatal and birthing program is achieving outstanding results in Closing the Gap on birth weight and antenatal attendance rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mums and their babies.

The latest statistics show that 100 per cent of women are attending more than five antenatal visits and the large majority are having their initial contact earlier in the first trimester. Birthing rates have also increased with only 2 per cent have a birth weight less than 2,500 grams which make them on par with non-indigenous women.

Being part of the Ngarrama Royal Midwifery Group Practice (MGP) allows women to have a dedicated, named midwife who coordinates all of their antenatal and postnatal care. Women who identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander or whose baby will identify can access the all-risk MGP model of care either by self-referral or through their GP.

The 24-hour on-call service was launched in January 2015 and has birthed more than 128 women within the MGP model.