District Health Board Elections 2019
Turn out was poor sadly and the vote did not go completely how we would have liked. Fortunately our top ones for both CCDHB (Sue Kedgley) and HVDHB (Richard Stein) were re-elected and elected respectively, which is great news. Sue has been a great support for Birth Hub over the last few years, and Richard has been very supportive of midwives and Te Awakairangi Birthing Centre in Melling during this current campaign.
New CCDHB (Wellington)
Preliminary Result of the 7 elected members
as at 29th October 2019:
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New HVDHB (Hutt Valley)
Final Result of the 7 elected members
as at 29th October 2019:
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Previous post - prior to election day (Saturday 12th October 2019)
There are 11 Board members. The public gets to vote 7 candidates in, and the Minister of Health can appoint 4 more individuals to fill in gaps in skills/experience. It uses the STV electoral system (Single Transferable Vote) so you need to number candidates in the order you prefer them, with 1 being the one you most want to be elected. NB do not write any number next to candidates that you do not want to be elected.
VOTING DAY IS SATURDAY 12TH OCTOBER 2019 (post vote by 8th Oct, otherwise can personally post at Council Offices and in libraries).
VOTING DAY IS SATURDAY 12TH OCTOBER 2019 (post vote by 8th Oct, otherwise can personally post at Council Offices and in libraries).
We sent this letter on 18th Sept to the 23 candidates standing for Capital & Coast District Health Board (CCDHB - Wellington) elections and, from their responses (deadline 30th Sept) Birth Hub has determined that these candidates will best support maternity, midwifery and giving women choice on where to birth their babies:
Sue Kedgley - CCDHB
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We sent this letter on 18th Sept to the 13 candidates standing for the Hutt Valley District Health Board (HVDHB) elections and from their responses (deadline 30th Sept) Birth Hub has determined that these candidates will best support maternity, midwifery and giving women choice on where to birth their babies:
Richard Stein - HVDHB
We have loved Richard's responses to our letter.
We give him our full support. First immediate response: I met with midwives at the birthing centre on Connolly St. last week and read the outside review and recommendations for Hutt's maternity services. I am aware that our C-section rate is around 40%. I found the report shocking and very disturbing. I am a strong, strong supporter of the birthing centre and it is inconceivable to me that Hutt DHB is not supporting the centre financially. My daughter had her baby at Hutt Hospital. The unit is depressing and it was my wife (a nurse) who had to alert the nurses of the decelerations and I had to start my daughter's I.V. cannula because no one else was available. She ended up with a C-section. In the States, my wife refused to have our second and third children at the hospital (we had home deliveries which were anything but mainstream in the 80's) because she did not want to end up medicated and with a C-section (as a doctor's wife). I will fight for DHB financial support of the birthing centre and do everything that I can to see that the administration is complying with recommendations from the outside review. This should include monthly updates by the CEO on their progress. If elected, I will meet with the CEO in November to express my concern and let her know that I will continue to press for urgent compliance with those recommendations. It should be the DHB's highest priority at this point. After the women who use the birthing centre, the hospital is the centre's major beneficiary. Kind regards, Richard. Richard then responded again 29.09.19 with this: Here is what I propose to do: 1. Ensure that the recommendations made in the outside review are being made. 2. Push strongly for financial support of the birthing centre. 3. Propose revamping maternity services in the Hutt Valley so that the Hospital, Community Midwives, and birthing centre are all working together as a unit. This, hopefully, will improve efforts at recruitment of more midwives. 4. Earmarking funds specifically for maternity care. 5. Consider developing another birthing centre, with the DHB as a partner 6. Having the DHB make a commitment to ensure the viability and continuation of the Birthing Centre 7. Making maternity services a standing item on the Board agenda. 8. Requiring the Board to take a tour of the birthing centre as well as the hospital maternity ward (assuming this hasn't already been done) and to open direct dialog between the birthing centre and the Board. I think these goals will be possible if we get enough Board members who make maternity care a top priority. I am sure that as I continue to research this situation and learn more from those providing maternity services, more concrete solutions will present themselves. Kind regards, Richard Josh Briggs - HVDHB
Josh has "more midwives" as one of his policies! go on TheSpinOff website to see.
Kia ora,
I hope I have got this to you in time for your private zoom meeting. If you or anyone else have any questions about where I stand on maternity care, or anything else on the DHB, please feel free to get in touch I am very concerned about the current lack of appropriate staffing to deliver meaningful and safe maternity care in the Hutt Valley. I have spoken with midwives who are currently working in the Hutt Valley and those that have done so in the past. They have shared with me their first hand experience of the challenges they face each day and the concerns they have for the safety of the mothers and babies, as well as the reality that they and their colleagues are severely overworked and burnt out which leads to mistakes happening frequently. It is a lottery if you are even able to access a community midwife at the moment. This is not good enough as all parents going through pregnancy should have access to the support they need and deserve. Women in New Zealand have so much choice around where they birth their children – be it at home, at a primary birthing unit or in a hospital. I think it is very important to preserve all of these options for all women so they are empowered to choose where they deliver their baby. I think there needs to be funding ring fenced for maternity care in the Hutt Valley. This needs to cover both primary and tertiary care for pregnant women and their whanau. We have a growing population which is going to require more investment in maternity care, both now and in the future. I will also be advocating for independent midwives working in our DHB and across the country to have a review of their funding model. I don’t think the current way they are funded accurately reflects the increased needs and complexities of many pregnant women and makes becoming a midwife less desirable for some people as they cannot afford to be independent in their practice. If I am elected to the Hutt Valley DHB I am committed to do all I can to improve maternity care for our community in partnership with my fellow board members and maternity care providers. Nga mihi, Josh Briggs Candidate - Hutt City Council & Hutt Valley DHB Cheryl Davies - HVDHB
Thank you for your informative email and the accompanying video that has provided me with some key background information highlighting the need for urgent action to help address the compounding issues surrounding maternity care in the Hutt Valley. Every pregnant woman and her whānau in the Hutt Valley deserves to have quality care to ensure the safe birth and post natal care and support of both mum, baby and the whanau. I have noted the high number of Maori births and having worked in Maori health over many years, I support the need to adequately fund and monitor quality maternity care and support services for all women and their babies in the Hutt Valley. If I am successful in being elected to the HVDHB, I will strongly advocate to reduce inequities by improving and funding quality maternity services in the Hutt Valley. I would like to thank the Birth Hub for monitoring and advocating to ensure the provision of safe and high quality maternity services for mothers and their babies here in the Hutt Valley.
Naku noa na Cheryl Davies Manager Kamiria Mid Thomas-Savelio - HVDHB
Essentially where I stand in relationship to the underfunding of maternity services to meet maternity standards is not acceptable. Woman and babies in their most venerable moments must be given the required services to ensure their wellbeing.
If I’m to be voted into the DHB, with my business background and a huge amount of experience in resource management I believe that I will be able to be a real advocate for those who are unable to speak for themselves. I’m happy to bring more detail in the video and will get this to you by the end of the week. Regards, Mid" [Birth Hub Edit - did not receive a video) Prue Lamason - HVDHB
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