Birth Centre

The Townsville Hospital Birth Centre is located on the Townsville University Hospital campus and offers one-to-one care to women with low-risk pregnancies in a home-like environment with minimal intervention during pregnancy and birth. This model of care is best described as family friendly, women-centred care with an holistic approach to pregnancy, birth and parenting.

We support and empower women and our model is based on mutual respect with an emphasis on safety for mother and baby. Your midwife will assist you to make informed choices and will aim to be an active participant in your care choices.

Our Philosophy of Care

The Townsville Birth Centre acknowledges:

• pregnancy and childbirth is a normal physiological and social event across the lifespan of a woman
• women are respected and treated as persons in their own right
• women are educated and empowered to embrace a strong sense of self, to trust their bodies, to plan their pregnancies and to make informed choices
• women believe birth is normal and prefer to avoid unnecessary interventions
  respect, trust and open communication is promoted and results in the best possible healthcare available to all women
• the midwives embrace the philosophies of the midwifery profession
• midwives facilitate active, natural birth with minimal intervention through the provision of physical, emotional and social support.

How do I access the Birth Centre model of care?

To be accepted for pregnancy care and to go on the waitlist for your preferred model of care, all women require a referral through one of the following pathways:

1. Self-referral: Submit a referral using the Queensland Health online form:
   https://www.pregnancycare.health.qld.gov.au/self-referral-form

• Please make a comment in the comments section at the end of the form if you have a preference for MGP or Birth Centre, or both, and any other relevant information.

OR

1. GP referral: Your GP can send a completed referral directly to:
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We request that referrals are submitted at the earliest opportunity to ensure your pregnancy care is not delayed while awaiting potential acceptance into either MGP or Birth Centre.

Once your referral is received and processed by the TUH Referral Hub, it will be forwarded to the Women's and Children's Clinic (WCC) at TUH. A WCC midwife will contact you for an initial triage discussion about your pregnancy care options. During this call, the midwife will confirm that all required information about your pregnancy is completed and discuss any recommended care such as blood tests or ultrasounds. If you have been receiving care with your GP, the midwife will review what care has already occurred and identify any other recommendations.

If you express interest in Birth Centre care or MGP, your referral will then be sent to those teams for review. Please note that places within the MGP and Birth Centre are limited, and submitting a referral requesting this model of care does not guarantee allocation.

If you have not been contacted by the Birth Centre or MGP teams by 12 weeks + 0 days of pregnancy, it means you have not been accepted into these teams. In this case, your ongoing pregnancy care will continue through the standard antenatal clinic pathway at the TUH.

If you need assistance with the referral process or have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Additional information can be found at Having a baby | Townsville Hospital and Health Service

Please note, to be eligible for the Birth Centre model of care you must reside within 40km of Townsville University Hospital, excluding Magnetic Island.

Contact us

Townsville University Hospital Birth Centre

Ph: (07) 4433 2779

Please leave us a message and we will get back to you as soon as possible.