MatHOME officially launches at RBWH
RBWH maternity patient Chelsea and her partner Michael were excited to be one of the first families to take part in the MatHOME program
A new pilot maternity program, MatHOME, has officially commenced at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH), allowing antenatal inpatients who meet select criteria to receive top-tier maternity care from the comfort of their home.
Patients with high-risk pregnancies can be required to spend weeks or even months in hospital to allow the clinical team to monitor them and their babies. The MatHOME program allows patients to be monitored and cared for at home with visits from a hospital midwife.
The pilot will run for four months and has been designed to support a safe and positive patient and family experience.
RBWH Maternity Service Improvement Clinical Nurse/Midwifery Consultant Jeanette Tyler said the team are excited to offer a more flexible model of care to this cohort of women.
“We know that spending extended lengths of time in hospital can put emotional and financial strain on families, so we want to eliminate some of that pressure by bringing the hospital to them,” Jeanette said.
“Our sister program, NeoHOME, has now been running for four months and has received glowing feedback from families, both around the positive impact having baby home sooner has on their mental health and on the growth and development of their baby.
“We hope to see this success mirrored in the MatHOME program and look forward to our evaluation at the end of the four-month pilot.”
RBWH maternity patient Chelsea is one of the first patients to take part in the MatHOME program.
“I have a high-risk pregnancy so my baby and I need to be carefully monitored,” Chelsea said.
“With the MatHOME program, my midwife Nate came to my house every day with the same machines they use in the hospital to check my blood pressure and make sure my baby was okay.
“It was much more convenient to be in the comfort of my own home. I didn’t have to drive anywhere or pay for parking, plus it’s so hot at the moment so even a short walk into the hospital would be draining.
“We were so happy the MatHOME program was available to us and I think it will benefit a lot of women moving forwards.”