Community feedback on care of babies sought

MidCentral District Health Board wants feedback from families on the first 1000 days of their baby's life. Photo / File

MidCentral District Health Board is wanting to hear the voice of Tararua community about the care offered for whānau and pēpi in their first 1000 days of life.

It's part of a wider study that also covers Horowhenua and Ōtaki.

The community engagement process, Tūngia te Ururua, will be asking local whānau about the support they received or are receiving in providing care for their baby (pēpi) during the first 1000 days (from conception to two years of age).

The information gathered will be used to optimise future service provision to meet the needs of local wāhine, whānau and pēpi.

Te Uru Pā Harakeke – Healthy Women, Children and Youth Operations executive Sarah Fenwick said she was pleased there was an opportunity to work with these communities, through Tūngia te Ururua, to find the best opportunities for maternity care and services in the first 1000 days.

"We know that the first 1000 days of a baby's life are so important for lifelong health and wellbeing, and we want to ensure that the pēpi of Tararua and the whānau bringing them into the world, have the best support and care possible," Fenwick said.

"It's important that we think innovatively about our care for wāhine, whānau and pēpi into the future because of the increasing complexity of pregnant women, increasing birth rate and inequities across our district. Tūngia te Ururua will put the people who use and benefit from these services at the centre of decisions about their experience of healthcare so we can create the best models of care together."

The community engagement is scheduled to begin in the next few weeks and will include community focus groups, visits to various groups and surveys.

"We are committed to these communities and ensuring they have what they need to get the best outcomes for women, whānau and pēpi.

"The people in Tararua, Horowhenua and Ōtaki know better than anyone else about what they need, so we want to hear from them about what is working and what is not working for them within our current services and those that we fund," Fenwick said.

"We hope people in this district feel empowered through Tūngia te Ururua to contribute to the design of our services."