The West Coast District Health Board is pleased to present the Maternity Quality and Safety Programme Annual Report for 2018/19.
The West Coast has had a busy year again this year as we work towards the development of a Maternity strategy that will guide us for the next five years. A broad
framework was presented to a Hui in February this year and we now continue to refine the outcomes of the feedback. This work along with the realignment of the West
Coast health system beyond maternity has prompted much discussion about how we best meet the needs of our maternity population. The discussions have also developed
into how maternity then sits alongside the other work happening particularly in the well child and mental health spaces.
Last year’s report has been shared widely and has prompted more discussion about how we can continue to improve the maternity system for our mothers and their babies. The work that has been started in the previous year continues to evolve specifically in relation to the voices of the women and their whanau in our communities.
The maternity workforce continues to be a challenge for this small remote rural DHB. These discussions have sat alongside the wider discussions about rural generalism within our DHB and the challenges of a rural / remote rural DHB the length of the South Island. Equity of service provision and what equity means for our various populations has also been a frequent topic of discussion this year especially when we speak of the women who need to leave the Coast to have their baby (ies).