Model of Care midwifery
Model of Care midwifery
Disappointed
in its closure
I cannot find the words to express my sadness at the thought of losing the midwifery model of care at Waimea Women’s Center. You may not know what a gem it is. At a time when the United States is 35th in the world in maternal-fetal outcomes and when the mortality rate of mothers is rising in the United States compared to other countries, the stellar outcomes of The WWC OB program is desirable for all health care models. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Voluntary Review has confirmed this. World Health Organization recommends this.
In the Healthy People 2011 goals, we found if women exclusively breastfed for six months, there would be a $3 billion a year savings in health care costs. This is multiplied by the life-long benefits for mother and child as well. The collaborative care midwifery model has shown excellent results for all the above areas.
One of the reasons I left WWC to be with my family was the struggle of not having enough doctors and midwives with whom to share calls. I was excited to see there was now adequate staffing. I was hoping the fiscal errors would have been corrected and HMSA would see the benefit of a low C-section rate, less pain medication and more successful breastfeeding.
Is this the only department of the hospital in a fiscal quandary? Is this the only department that sees a large share of Medicaid? Is there a large population in Hawaii needing health care assistance now? Should the hospital be running an outpatient clinic? Is there a win-win solution? Could North Hawaii Community Hospital be a groundbreaker in successful delivery of maternity care and women’s health care? Could we have two to three birthing centers on the island, following the collaborative care midwifery model? There is money available.
This would be a wonderful research project for public health candidates, and grant money should be attainable. There are already women who travel to the Big Island and Waimea for their birth — this can generate funding.
Thank you for your time reading this heartfelt request to find a way for the Big Island to provide women with the midwifery model of care.
Jade P. McGaff, MD
Waimea
Hauling rubbish
Mayor not being completely truthful
Quoth the mayor, “I’ve made it clear that we have made no decision and have no plan to truck rubbish to Puuanahulu.” I guess an expensive, budget-busting, nontransparent, super secret, 90-day pilot program does not qualify as a plan.
A line in Sir Walter Scott’s 1808 poem “Marmion” offers the best analysis: “Oh, what a tangled web we weave … when first we practise to deceive.”
Mike Reimer
Kailua-Kona