The Carroll Labor Government is making sure babies and mums in Melbourne’s west get the care they need.
Six new Special Care Nursery cots are now operating at Joan Kirner Women’s and Children’s Hospital, with another three opening later this year.
The new cots will care for more than 300 babies requiring specialist care each year.
It’s part of a $249 million investment to ease pressure on one of Victoria’s busiest maternity hospitals.
The new cots will be supported by around 50 healthcare workers delivering this important specialist care.
Labor is also extending and expanding the successful Neonatal Postnatal Support Nurse pilot at major maternity hospitals.
It sees registered nurses working alongside midwives to focus on caring for newborns who may need treatment for conditions such as jaundice.
Providing this care on the postnatal ward means mothers and newborns can stay together in the critical early days.
Backed by an $8.1 million investment, the pilot will now operate at:
