11 June 2010 Collaborative care required for midwifery and home births
Recent media interest in home births has again highlighted the need for meaningful and formal collaborative care arrangements between health professionals.
The safety of mothers and babies is paramount and it is important for any healthcare provider to continue to involve the patient’s regular GP during pregnancy. The College will continue to advocate for meaningful collaboration between healthcare providers for the benefit of patients. Patients enjoy better heath outcomes when they are treated within a model of care that provides coordinated, continuous and comprehensive patient centred care, delivered by appropriately trained health professionals.
In the past, the College, together with the Australian Medical Association and The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, has been supportive of government amendments requiring midwives and nurse practitioners to work in formal collaborative arrangements with medical practitioners. To read more, visit www.racgp.org.au/media2009/35385.
M5 Project - RACGP men's health initiative helping men to help themselves
M5 encourages men and those who care about them to recognise the importance of men forming an ongoing relationship with a GP.
