- A team of obstetricians, midwives, medical staff and maternity patients are preparing for the start of the new publicly funded homebirth service on the Sunshine Coast.
- Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service (HHS) is the first region in Queensland to offer this service.
- Sunshine Coast Health is currently taking expressions of interest for the service which begins in mid-2024.
The new publicly funded homebirth service is set to begin on the Sunshine Coast in the coming months.
Following the Miles Government announcement in November last year, the project team made up of obstetricians, midwives, medical staff from across the health service, Queensland Ambulance Service, and maternity patients have been working hard to support a safe service for women, babies, and families on the Sunshine Coast.
The new service will be offered to women who meet agreed clinical criteria and live within a safe travel distance to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
The multidisciplinary team have been preparing for the homebirth service through simulations to ensure frontline health staff know what to do to support women to safely have a home birth.
Expression of interest for a homebirth recently opened ahead of the commencement of the service in the second half of 2024.
