Petition

The petition of residents of the State of Queensland draws to the attention of the House the loss of maternity services from the Biloela Hospital.

Pregnant women must travel hundreds of kilometres, leaving their homes, support networks and often their families, while awaiting the birth of their child. This has negative financial and emotional impacts on families, increasing risks to the baby and mother.

Research states that 1 in 10 babies born in Australia are premature. This high premature birth rate places these women at serious risk of having to birth in facilities without appropriate care, or even on our roads while in transit, at a huge risk to patient safety.

Continuity of care is directly affected as the ante and postnatal carers and midwives are unable to be there for the births. This also makes it more difficult to attract midwives to these communities.

The loss of maternity services has a flow-on effect to the broader community, with qualified staff and their families leaving to pursue their chosen careers elsewhere. Young couples have been known to make a conscious decision to leave in search of better maternity services.

Your petitioners, therefore, request the House to do all in its power to return full birthing services at the Biloela Hospital with utmost priority.