The New Directions: Mothers and Babies Services

Running head: NURSING ASSIGNMENT
THE NEW DIRECTIONS: MOTHERS AND BABIES SERVICES
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

1NURSING ASSIGNMENT
The New Directions: Mothers and Babies Services profile
As per the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2019), persistent complications in the
pregnancy and disparities in the birth outcome among the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islanders has indicated towards the requirement of healthcare services that could target these
complications. Further to overcome these limitations, development of a healthcare service
namely The New Directions: Mothers and Babies Services program and funded by the
Australian government so that aboriginal community could avail the healthcare service for
neonates, and mothers without any complication (Health.gov.au, 2019). In the year 2007 and
2008, more than 85 healthcare organizations were asked by the Australian government to
include this service in their facility and they were funded by the Australian government.
Hence, the primary aim of this service tried to achieve is providing the aboriginal community
with the opportunity so that they could utilize the maternity and child care services available
in Australian healthcare facilities. Further as per the Australian Ministry of Health (2019), the
type of services this healthcare service offers the aboriginal community are antenatal and
postnatal care, continuous healthcare check-ups for indigenous children, monitoring and
developing the healthcare milestones for the infection control of aboriginal community,
immunisation, malnutrition, breastfeeding and parenting related educational and training care,
and information about the child and maternal care to the community (Australian Government
Department of Health, 2019). Further, the commencement of this service in healthcare
services started in 2007 when only 6 organizations accepted this service, and within four
more waves more than 85 organizations implemented this service so that aboriginal
community could be provided with maternity and neonatal care interventions (Australian
Bureau Statistics, 2019). Health.gov.au (2019) mentioned that the gap rate of child mortality
among indigenous and non-indigenous death was 85% in the year 2014, more than 26% of
aboriginal children were not able to come to the healthcare facilities and due to the lack of

2NURSING ASSIGNMENT
healthcare service, the mortality rate increased. Hence, these are the complications due to
which the healthcare service was strongly implemented in the healthcare services around
Australia.
The external factors that have influenced the establishment of this health service
The New Directions: Mothers and Babies Services was developed to increase the
number of aboriginal people, especially for the maternal and child care so that they could
utilize the services and develop a healthy future (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare,
2019). It was seen that aboriginal communities participation in maternal and child care
services were very that and this was the primary reason behind their increased maternal and
child death. As per the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2019), the rate of child death within
the age 0 to 4 was 146 among 100,000 children compared to 70 children in the non-
indigenous community, hence the gap of death among the indigenous and non- indigenous
was more than 50% due to which it was important to close the gap for the healthcare
improvement of the community (Australian Bureau Statistics, 2019). Hence, this was one of
the critical aspects due to which the Australian government determined to develop this
healthcare service program for the aboriginal community. Besides this, self-determination or
the right and ability of the aboriginal community regarding maternity and child care should
be managed. As per the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2019), inequality is one
of the crucial aspects that is affecting the healthcare condition in Australia. Australian
Institute of Health and Welfare (2019), the rate of indigenous child check up in 2013-14 was
around 194 among 1000 children (0 to 14) and the rate of hospitalization was only 4.2% of
total hospitalization. Hence, this indicated that maternity and child care for aboriginals is a
crucial factor and should be implemented critically. This is the primary reason for which the
Australian government determined to develop and implement The New Directions: Mothers
and Babies Services among the healthcare facilities of Australia. Besides these, the United