Midwives forced to stop work: [1 Edition]
Thea Williams, John Stapleton. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 21 May 2002: 4.
Abstract
Australian College of Midwives national chief executive Alana Street said training of midwives was under threat after insurance was withdrawn for students on placement in Victoria.
The threat to agency staff, and midwifery students, added to the problem for independent midwives, president of the NSW Midwives Association Pat Brodie said.
"Within the last six months most independent midwives across Australia have lost their indemnity," she said. "All of them will have lost it by the end of this month. There is an urgency for the commonwealth Government to consider including midwifery in the review of indemnity for obstetricians."
MIDWIVES from South Australia's largest nursing agency servicing mainstream hospitals were unable to work yesterday as the medical indemnity crisis widened.
Their situation compounds threats to midwifery services nationwide and has forced South Australian Premier Mike Rann to call for an immediate national response.
It also led to the Professional Indemnity Crisis Committee, representing health agencies in the state, to warn that midwifery and obstetric services could be cut altogether.
The threat of obstetricians withdrawing their labour forced the federal Government to deliver a multi-million-dollar solution to their insurance void.
But midwives, excluded from the recent public indemnity insurance summit, say they are still waiting for government action.
Midwife Tricia Walker arrived at the Central Districts Hospital in Adelaide's northern suburbs yesterday to find she could not work because she was no longer covered as a midwife for Nursing Agency Australia, nor will she be able to work at the city's Women's and Children's Hospital.
"There are weeks where the agencies can't even supply all their midwives," Mrs Walker said. "It could be disastrous if you go into labour and there are no midwives."
NAA managing director Lyn Hepburn-Brown said her company had been refused indemnity insurance for midwives, even by overseas underwriters, because "Australia is on the nose".
"I went to see a broker in London. He said: `Until the governments do something about legislation and there is more certainty, since September 11 we have more business than we can write on our own doorstep'."
Australian College of Midwives national chief executive Alana Street said training of midwives was under threat after insurance was withdrawn for students on placement in Victoria.
The federal Government last week offered to insure midwifery students, but the college was now negotiating with private hospitals.
"The insurance crisis has finally come to the federal Government's attention after 30,000 doctors in one state made noises," Ms Street said.
"Midwives affect 250,000 families a year."
The threat to agency staff, and midwifery students, added to the problem for independent midwives, president of the NSW Midwives Association Pat Brodie said.
"Within the last six months most independent midwives across Australia have lost their indemnity," she said. "All of them will have lost it by the end of this month. There is an urgency for the commonwealth Government to consider including midwifery in the review of indemnity for obstetricians."
Mr Rann said indemnity insurance was a national issue.
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