Overview
In the Maternity Group Practice model of care, midwives work in pairs to care for you during pregnancy, labour and after you have had your baby. Your appointments before the birth will occur on Tuesdays, with morning and afternoon availability.
When you go into labour, you can call your Primary care midwife directly and they will meet you at Mercy Hospital for Women in Heidelberg.
Following discharge from the hospital, your midwives will visit you at home for up to two weeks.
Getting here
Find us at:
163 Studley Road
Heidelberg Victoria 3084
For more information on getting here, visit Mercy Hospital for Women .
Location details
There are clinics located on the first and third-floor
Opening hours
24-hour service
Your appointment
What to do before
Maternity Group Practice is a very popular model of care and places are limited. Please make sure your General Practitioner refers you to us as soon as possible.
What to bring
Please bring:
- all current blood test and urine test results
- pregnancy ultrasound results
- Medicare Card (or your passport and travel visa if you do not have a Medicare Card)
- completed paperwork.
What to expect on the day
Your midwife will call you and explain what to expect.
More information
Team Composition
You will be assigned a primary care midwife and their partner.
What questions should you ask
Please come to your appointment with any questions you may have about your care.
Opportunities to be involved in research
We regularly participate in research projects and you have the opportunity to be involved. You can find more information about these projects in our waiting rooms, including how they may benefit other babies, mothers and families. Your midwife may also talk to you about participating in any projects.
For health professionals
With Maternity Group Practice, pregnancy care is provided by the same midwife throughout your patient’s experience. It is for women with low-risk pregnancies only. The midwife will attend the birth and patients are able to go home sooner after having their baby.
Procedural information
Early referral is essential. Patient must live in Heidelberg or surrounding suburbs and have a low-risk pregnancy.
Referrals to this service are assessed against the Statewide Referral Criteria. Please utilise HealthPathways to assist in making the referral. Referrals which do not meet the Statewide Referral Criteria will be declined.
How to prepare the patient
Please prepare your patient by:
- explaining alternative models of maternity care that may be suitable
- encouraging your patient to ask any questions she may have
- suggesting she book into a childbirth and parent education class if she is first-time mother.
What/when you should refer to us
Refer your patient if:
- their pregnancy is low-risk
- they wish to be cared for in a Maternity Group Practice model
- they are aware that early discharge is a feature of this pregnancy care model.
Mercy Hospital for Women is a public hospital. Women must live in our catchment area. Our services can also be accessed as a private patient.
Our clinic is receiving eReferrals via HealthLink SmartForms. Please see our Refer a patient page for more information.
What/when you should not refer to us
Women with high-risk or very high-risk pregnancies.
Additional contact details
If you require further information about Maternity Group Practice, please email [email protected]
Make a referral
Access Maternity Services referral forms and guidelines to make a referral for this service.
Contacts
For Health Professionals
HealthPathways Melbourne
- Email address: [email protected]
- Website: HealthPathways Melbourne
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About:
HealthPathways Melbourne provides clinicians with a single website to access clinical and referral pathways, and resources. Pathways are created by local GPs, working in partnership with specialists, nurses, allied health and other health professionals.
Mercy Health recommends clinicians to access HealthPathways Melbourne for guidance in assessing, managing and referring for patient conditions (login required).
Referrals to outpatient clinics at Mercy Health will be triaged against clinical information and investigations based on these guidelines.
Referrals that do not meet the required clinical information and investigations will not be accepted.
HealthPathways Melbourne is available for free to health professionals working in the North Western Melbourne and Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network catchments.
Email HealthPathways to request access or if you need to confirm your username and password.
Healthlink SmartForm eReferrals
- Website: au.healthlink.net/support
-
About:
HealthLink is a secure digital platform for sending referrals directly from your GP practice software (Best Practice, Genie, Medical Director and MedTech Evolution).
Practices without conformant software can register for a free HealthLink Portal licence by completing the online registration form and noting in the comments/message field that you would like to use the SmartForms, then selecting the two checkboxes – (1) Receive Electronic Correspondence (free of charge) and (3) Send Electronic Smart Forms (My Aged Care, Transport for NSW, Monash Health etc).
Once HealthLink receives your completed registration application, this will be processed and the portal details will be forwarded to you.
eReferral Support Contact Information
- For GPs in the Eastern Melbourne Primary Healthcare Network region wanting to enable eReferrals (HealthLink Smartforms), please contact [email protected]or if urgent (03) 9046 0300.
- For GPs in the North Western Melbourne Primary Healthcare Network region wanting to enable eReferrals (HealthLink Smartforms), please contact HealthLink via phone: 1800 125 036 or email [email protected]
- For issues with HealthLink SmartForms, or to have this solution enabled within your clinical software system, please contact HealthLink on 1800 125 036 or [email protected].
Statewide Referral Criteria for Specialist Clinics - Victoria
- Website: Statewide Referral Criteria
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About:
The Department of Health and Human Services has developed statewide referral criteria to assist GPs and clinicians referring patients to specialist clinics. These referral criteria have been developed to improve access to specialist clinics in public hospitals by improving the quality and appropriateness of referrals.
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