Parents struggling without birthing services at key hospital

Five years without birthing support leaves Carnarvon's expectant parents struggling In short: It has been nearly five years since birthing services were suspended in the Gascoyne town of Carnarvon. Parents forced to travel hundreds of kilometres and spend thousands of dollars to give birth and access support services say it is affecting their mental health. What's next? The WA Country Health Service has not said when birthing services will return to Carnarvon. New parents say their mental and physical health are at risk after almost five years without birthing services at a key country hospital. Birthing services were suspended at Carnarvon Hospital, about 900 kilometres north of Perth, in February 2022 due to a shortage of midwives and obstetricians. As a result, Gascoyne parents have been forced to take extra leave from work, some travelling more than 1,000km to give birth. Carnarvon residents Tarlia Hill and Michael Wilkins are preparing to make that same journey to have their first child in Geraldton. "I'm a bit scared of being in a car for that long that close to having my baby," Ms Hill said. "I've already had quite a few complications with the pregnancy and have been very sick." Despite a difficult pregnancy, Ms Hill said the lack of services in Carnarvon had affected her the most. One of her biggest battles was for her mother to be allowed to stay at the accommodation to support her through her first pregnancy. "You're supposed to be excited and I haven't been excited at all," she said. "It makes me feel a bit guilty. Going away has just kind of ruined the whole first-baby experience. "I've got a really good support system behind me, but I couldn't imagine what some of the other mums could be going through if they don't have the same support." Having watched his sister wait months for reimbursement under WA's Patient Assisted Travel Scheme (PATS), Mr Wilkins said he and his partner could not afford it. He said the birth was costing them about $10,000, and paying several thousand dollars more for accommodation up-front was not possible. The couple have now had their accommodation paid in full. But if their baby is late, it will be their responsibility to find and pay for more accommodation. "I've got no leave really behind me, and due to my position at work, I can't access parental leave or anything to support us while we're down there," Mr Wilkins said. "No-one should have to go away from their town to have a baby, and the option should really be everywhere for everyone." No services for new mothers Jessica Halpin has already gone through the experience of travelling to have her baby, and was told she needed to go to Perth four weeks before her due date. She said she was "luckily" provided accommodation at the Ronald McDonald House (RMH). With her family in the UK, she said she would have been more than $10,000 out of pocket without the space at RMH. "Before I gave birth, it was fine," Ms Halpin said. "After giving birth, with all your hormones changing and crashing, that was hard because I was quite anxious." Ms Halpin said explaining her pregnancy to a different midwife at every appointment also took a toll. "Everyone reassured me, but to have someone who had known you throughout your pregnancy would have felt a lot better," she said. When the couple returned to Carnarvon, Ms Halpin had little support. Her partner had run out of parental leave and had to return to work, and she had to go through a difficult breastfeeding process without a lactation consultant in town. "For new mums, breastfeeding is really hard, and I didn't know that,"she said. "Having that in-person contact is just a lot better. It feels more personal and you can have a proper conversation without worrying if the wi-fi is dropping out." A WA Country Health Service (WACHS) spokesperson said in a statement it had supported 359 women from the region to give birth at a location of their choice since the suspension. The spokesperson said WACHS was committed to re-establishing birthing services, and was still actively recruiting to fill workforce gaps. Promises not kept Premier Roger Cook told parliament in 2024 that mothers travelling from Carnarvon to give birth would not need to access the PATS scheme and the government would fully cover costs. Mid-West MP Shane Love said this was at odds with what families in his electorate were telling him. "Families are having to shell out thousands of dollars up front and wait months before they can claim that money back," Mr Love said. "It's simply not good enough and the government needs to lift its game. "I don't think they are trying very hard. If they were, they would have someone there. 1,700 days is a long time to run a recruitment process."