MCA's Submission to Senate Select Committee on Women's Health
9 October 2026
To the Select Committee on Women’s Health
Maternity Choices Australia (MCA) submits the following priority recommendations to the Select Committee on Women’s Health. Each recommendation responds directly to the Committee’s Terms of Reference and is grounded in MCA’s evidence‑based strategic plan, lived‑experience expertise, and national advocacy work.
MCA hears from women every week who have experienced disrespectful care throughout the perinatal journey. Most women seek, and expect, a low, or no intervention journey. Most assume, not unreasonably, that they will be informed and supported in this journey by health care professionals who respect them. It is estimated that less than 10% of women actually receive this care.
It is well established that relationship based care - also called the continuity of midwifery care - has the best outcomes for mothers and babies. This should be the standard of care. At MCA we understand that women who receive this model of care do better in their postpartum.
The antenatal experience is critical to the postnatal experience. Providing women with the means to navigate the maternity system is key to effective communication and preparation for the birth and beyond. During pregnancy women need the opportunity to prepare for postpartum, through breastfeeding education, baby care and understanding matrescence. Partners must be drawn into this experience, with care providers uniquely positioned to identify domestic violence and implement strategies to alter this course.
Obstetric violence must be acknowledged in light of the NSW Birth Trauma Inquiry, with recommendation from that inquiry taken into consideration.
Birth trauma is preventable.
Women experience better outcomes when they have access to safe, respectful and evidence-based maternity care.
The solutions already exist.
The NSW Birth Trauma Inquiry identified clear reforms that would improve care and reduce trauma.
Action cannot wait.
Women and families deserve more than apologies and promises. They deserve meaningful reform.
Our Recommendations:
1. National rollout of The Birth Map across all maternity services, including collection of ‘birth journey’ data
Relevant Terms of Reference: 1 (a), (b), (c), (f), (g), (h)
The Birth Map is a scientifically validated communication and decision making tool. MCA’s strategic plan states:
“Effective preparation for birth using The Birth Map can reduce birth trauma… and further reduce the risk of postnatal depression.”
A national rollout would:
Improve postpartum mental health outcomes (ToR a, b).
Strengthen informed consent and reduce obstetric violence (ToR b, c).
Provide clinicians with evidence‑based communication training (ToR f).
Align maternity services with national strategic directions (ToR g).
Generate high‑quality consumer‑reported data on birth experiences (ToR h).
Recommendation:
The Commonwealth should mandate and fund national implementation of The Birth Map across all maternity services, replacing outdated birth plan templates and embedding birth‑journey data collection into routine maternity care.
2. Urgently and fully implement the Australian National Breastfeeding Strategy
Relevant Terms of Reference: 1. (a), (b), (c), (d)(i), (e), (g)
Breastfeeding is essential postpartum infrastructure. Yet fewer than two in five Australian mothers are able to exclusively breastfeed to six months, despite almost universal initiation. This reflects systemic failure, not maternal choice.
Full implementation of the National Breastfeeding Strategy would:
Improve maternal mental health by reducing breastfeeding‑related stress and trauma (ToR a, b).
Strengthen long‑term maternal physical health (ToR c).
Address cost and accessibility barriers to lactation support (ToR d(i)).
Improve antenatal and postpartum reproductive health education (ToR e).
Align Commonwealth and state programs with evidence‑based breastfeeding policy (ToR g).
Recommendation:
The Commonwealth should urgently fund and implement the National Breastfeeding Strategy, including universal access to publicly funded lactation support (IBCLC or equivalent) and integration of breastfeeding services into postpartum home‑visiting programs.
3. Fund and implement Recommendations 12–14 of the Senate Reproductive Rights Inquiry
Relevant Terms of Reference: 1. (a), (b), (c), (f), (g), (i), (j), (k)
The committee recommends that the Australian, state, and territory governments ensure that maternity care services, including birthing services, in non-metropolitan public hospitals are available and accessible for all pregnant women at the time they require them. This is particularly important for women in rural and regional areas.
The committee recommends that the Australian Government implements outstanding recommendations made by the Participating Midwife Reference Group to the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) Review Taskforce regarding midwifery services and continuity of care.
The committee recommends that the Australian Government works with the sector to increase birthing on country initiatives and other culturally appropriate continuity of care models.
Implementing these recommendations would:
Improve postpartum mental health by reducing trauma and coercion (ToR a, b).
Strengthen best‑practice maternity care models (ToR c).
Improve clinician training in consent, communication and trauma‑informed care (ToR f).
Align Commonwealth policy with lived‑experience evidence (ToR g).
Address women’s experiences of pain, dismissal and medical misogyny (ToR i, j).
Improve access to safe, affordable pain management options (ToR k).
Recommendation:
The Commonwealth should fully fund and implement Recommendations 12–14 of the Senate Reproductive Rights Inquiry as a matter of urgency across all models of care.
4. Fund, implement and independently evaluate the National Maternity Strategy
Relevant Terms of Reference: (a), (b), (c), (d), (f), (g), (h)
Australia has a strong national maternity strategy, but—as MCA’s strategic plan notes—state and territory implementation is inconsistent:
“Our federal government has held inquiries and published strategic plans… but state governments are not mandated to implement it, hence the lack of change.”
Full implementation would:
Improve postpartum mental health and physical recovery (ToR a, b).
Strengthen continuity‑of‑care models proven to improve maternal outcomes (ToR c).
Address cost and accessibility gaps in postpartum services (ToR d).
Improve clinician training and workforce planning (ToR f).
Ensure national consistency in maternity care programs (ToR g).
Improve data collection, reporting and evaluation (ToR h).
Recommendation:
The Commonwealth should fund, mandate and independently evaluate the National Maternity Strategy, ensuring consistent implementation across all jurisdictions.
5. National respectful maternity care training for all clinicians
Relevant Terms of Reference: (a), (b), (c), (f), (i), (j)
Respectful maternity care is essential to preventing birth trauma, improving postpartum mental health, and addressing medical misogyny. MCA is already co‑designing Australia’s first simulation‑based respectful maternity care program with Western Sydney University, as noted in our strategic plan:
“This research… has the potential to significantly improve mental health of women, particularly in relation to birth trauma.”
National training would:
Reduce postpartum trauma and improve mental health, including for women who planned to birth outside the maternity care system yet sought support from it (ToR a, b).
Strengthen best‑practice maternity care models (ToR c).
Improve clinician education and professional development (ToR f).
Address women’s experiences of pain dismissal and obstetric violence (ToR i, j).
Recommendation:
The Commonwealth should fund mandatory 5 yearly national respectful maternity care training for all maternity clinicians, including midwives, obstetricians, GPs, nurses and allied health professionals, with annual reporting on progress.
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