Freya Campbell is the first baby of 2024 born at Longreach Hospital.
Baby Freya, 3920g, was born at 11.43 am on 23 January to parents Zoe and Deon Campbell and big sister Inga.
Mum Zoe Campbell, now back home at the family property near Jericho, said Freya was a happy bubbly baby who was bringing smiles to everyone’s faces.
“It was really great being able to birth at Longreach Hospital,’’ she said.
“It meant we were able to stay in the region and return to home and family quickly and the care was excellent.’’
Longreach Hospital Senior Medical Officer and GP Obstetrician Dr Kirsty Symmons said women from throughout the Central West region had access to excellent low-risk birthing services at Longreach Hospital.
“In the Central West, maternity care providers include midwives providing care via a continuity of care midwifery group practice model, GP obstetricians, and the allied health care team,’’ she said.
“Women also have the options of shared care with their regular GP.
“Not all women may be aware of the range of birthing and antenatal care options available through the Longreach Hospital maternity service.
“As a result, some women from the Central West who could birth here at Longreach may be choosing to
give birth elsewhere despite the excellent facilities available right here, closer to home.’’
Central West Hospital and Health Service Assistant Director of Nursing Child, Youth and Family Services Amanda Hackett said between 60–70 babies a year, on average, are born at Longreach Hospital, with 68 in 2023.
Ms Hackett said the Longreach Hospital maternity unit offered three single ensuite rooms, a birth suite, a maternity assessment room, a baby assessment room, and an equipment room.
“There is also a lounge area with a kitchenette to support visiting families,’’ she said.
“The three single rooms on the maternity ward are big rooms with an ensuite and also an area where mums can bathe their babies.
“The birthing suite importantly allows space for family to be with a woman and the birthing team during the birth of a baby if they choose.
“On-site accommodation is available at Longreach Hospital at no cost for women in the lead-up to giving birth from 37 weeks onwards.
“This is particularly convenient for women who live away from Longreach.’’
Ms Hackett said the Longreach maternity service provided primary maternity care for women and families based on a continuity of care model.
For a woman who lives out of Longreach, her midwife will liaise with the local midwifery staff in her community.
BACKGROUND
A low-risk birthing service allows women who do not have a complex medical and obstetric history and who do not experience a complex antenatal period to be cared for locally if they choose.
Women with higher risk pregnancies can still receive the majority of their antenatal care through Longreach Maternity Service, with support through telehealth or face to face consultations with subspecialty services such as Obstetric Medicine, Maternal Foetal Medicine, and Perinatal Mental Health from tertiary centres.
They are then supported by the Central West Hospital and Health Service’s maternity services to birth in a larger centre with facilities to meet their needs, while remaining in contact with their midwife to support their return home postnatally.
Some women may also choose to give birth elsewhere to be closer to family and friends outside the region, or because they want to birth at a private facility, even though they may be clinically suitable to birth at Longreach.