Workforce and Maternity Services

Overview

This grant opportunity builds on existing efforts to improve rates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander babies born at a healthy birthweight and aims to reach up to 3,000 women who may be at highest risk of having an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander baby born outside the healthy birthweight range. Outcomes will directly contribute to the National Agreement on Closing the Gap Target 2 – Babies are born healthy and strong, with the target of ‘by 2031, increase the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander babies with a healthy birthweight to 91 per cent’. This grant will support organisations with projects, such as the Birthing on Country models of care, that deliver maternal health services directly to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and help boost their participation in the maternal health workforce, including: delivery of culturally safe antenatal care; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander midwife-led models of care and Indigenous birth companions; mechanisms to test and evaluate the impact of their models; community driven; and where relevant, have appropriate support from state and territory governments to deliver the activity. As targeting maternal smoking cessation has the highest potential to close the healthy birthweight gap, a requirement for this grant opportunity will be including smoking cessation activities in Birthing on Country models of care.