This manifesto seeks support, especially in New Zealand for:
Normal Labour and Birth
Labour and birth which starts, progresses and ends naturally achieves most couples’ desired birth outcome as well as uses less of limited health resources in both the short and long terms. This should be the New Zealand definition of “normal birth” and the gold standard or goal for maternity services quality assessment. New Zealand needs campaigns to monitor and improve such “normal birth” rates. Read more
Alternatives to Hospital Birthing
The place of birth dramatically affects birth outcomes – specifically, healthy women giving birth in hospital maternity units have more interventions than at birthing centres or at home. However perinatal morbidity and mortality at birthing centres and home are comparable to hospital, with higher maternal satisfaction. Yet the vast majority of New Zealand births are in hospital with increasing intervention rates. Promotion and support for healthy women to access birth centres or birth at home will increase “normal birth” rates, benefiting women, whanau and the community. Read more
Mother-Baby Unity Care Of All Sick Newborns
There is growing evidence of the benefits and means to not separate sick newborns from their mothers, as such separation leads to long-term poor outcomes. The New Zealand “rooming-in” standard for healthy babies and sick children should be applied to the care of sick babies. Read more
Human Milk Banks
When mother’s milk is not available for a baby, the next best choice is human milk from another mother. New Zealand, like most other countries, should re-establish human milk banks utilizing the high level of screening techniques now available. Read more
Implementation of the WHO Code
To achieve the MOH target to raise the proportion of infants exclusively breastfed for at least the first six months, New Zealand needs to fully adopt the WHO ‘Code’ to regulate the marketing of breast milk substitutes, as marketing currently undermines the efforts of our women and community. Read more