As recently observed by Emeritus
Professor, Dorothy Scott, OAM,
The Victorian Maternal and
Child Health Service is the envy of the rest of the country and well beyond the
shores of this country, as some of us have long known... (Spark and Cannon, 2011,
page 7).
ANF (Vic Branch) agrees with
this assessment and contends the high regard with which the Victorian maternal
and child health (MCH) nursing service is widely held is in no small part attributable
to the comprehensive educational preparation of Victorian MCH nurses. Far from
being an optional extra, qualifications in midwifery, general nursing and
maternal and child health post graduate programs of study, are the critical
linchpin of the high quality Victorian MCH nursing service.
ANF's submission argues strongly
against weakening the strong educational platform that underpins Victorian MCH
nursing practice, and contends removing midwifery as a qualification
prerequisite for Victorian MCH nurses would severely disable the Victorian MCH
nursing service - and in turn, reduce the quality of maternal and child health
care provided to Victorian families.
ANF's submission is structured
in order of each recommendation within Chapter 12 of the Draft Report.
This submission should be read
in conjunction with the initial and supplementary submissions of ANF Federal
Office.
