The new maternity care reforms have allowed midwives in Australia to apply for medicare provider numbers. One major hurdle to this is midwives being able to gain collaborative arrangements with doctors.
Both Louise and Juliana are medicare eligible midwives, and we both have our medicare provider numbers. In fact, Louise was the first midwife in Australia and Juliana about the 8th to receive a medicare provider number.
We have a supportive GP obstetrician on board for our collaborative arrangements for antenatal and postnatal care, but we are still waiting to get clinical privilege at the hospitals we have applied for clinical privilege through – RWH,
Mercy Hospital for Women, Angliss Hospital and Box Hill Hospital.
A week ago in ‘The Age newspaper, a midwifery colleague was featured discussing the hurdles faced my midwives with medicare eligibility. Please have a look at the article link below;
We have been to see our local MP and are in the process of following up this delay politically. We will keep you posted on any updates!
