Brisbane
Sydney
Our message is clear:
Midwives and the women who employ us CANNOT ACCEPT the medical dominance over childbirth that is now being written into the laws of this country. The requirement that was last Thursday slipped into an amendment to legislation before the Senate, to require midwives to work at all times in formal collaborative arrangements with doctors as a condition of insurance, is thereby a condition of professional registration. It is very likely that this amendment will pass through the Senate without resistance.
Midwives do consult, refer, and transfer care to doctors when clinically indicated, and with the permission of our clients. This is the essence of professional collaboration.
The problem here is that when legislation makes it a legally mandated requirement for one profession to collaborate (midwives) and there is no requirement on the other profession to participate (doctors) we essentially have one hand clapping. (thans Liz for that word picture!) That will enable doctors to say which midwives can be insured, register and practice and that isn’t acceptable. It will also enable a medical veto of women’s choices that doctors do not agree with.
The passing of this legislation will effectively extinguish the right of ANY midwife in Australia from practising to the contemporary scope of a midwife's practice, as defined by the International Confederation of Midwives, and accepted internationally by health and obstetric peak bodies. This means that midwives can only exist in a restricted practice zone. Apart from concerns around workforce and professional career options, the safety and efficacy of such a model of care cannot be assumed.
We understand that our PM, Kevin Rudd, is "unmoved by protests". Until this outrageous situation has been fixed, we must continue to:
WRITE LETTERS TO POLITICIANS
WRITE LETTERS TO EDITORS OF NEWSPAPERS
SPEAK ON RADIO CALL BACK
TALK TO ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN
USE THE INTERNET EFFECTIVELY - EG COMMENTS ON BLOGS
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