By Olivia Condous
Melton mothers are struggling to get vital health check ups for their children, with Melton council’s maternal and child health service still severely restricted in the wake of the pandemic.
Local governments provide free regular health checks with a qualified nurse for infants and children up to the age of six years old, in order to ensure every child’s development is on track.
On January 28, Melton council announced it was making temporary changes to its maternal and child health nurse service due to the pandemic ‘Code Brown’ in the public health system.
The council sent a letter to parents stating that appointments were only available to infants aged from 0-8 weeks and Indigenous infants and children.
Three months later, the service is only providing appointments for infants up to four months of age.
Melton resident Marie Goizet hasn’t been able to get a check up appointment for her 11-month-old son since he was 12 weeks old.
“I don’t know if he’s measuring up to everything that he’s meant to,” Ms Goizet said.
“On the website, it says you can fill in their details and show it at the next appointment, but there is no next appointment.
“I definitely worry, the sense of feeling supported isn’t there.”
Melton mum Rebecca Farrugia McGinley’s daughter was born at the beginning of the pandemic, and at eight months old, nurses suspected that her daughter had mild hip dysplasia.
After her daughter turned one, she was turned away by the council for her next check up appointment.
Ms Farrugia McGinley was told by a council officer in September, 2021 that the appointment shortage would only be temporary and she would be allocated an appointment for when her daughter turned two years old. But when Ms Farrugia McGinley’s daughter turned two, no appointment was available. She contacted a council officer and a Melton councillor directly with her concerns but received no reply.
“I thought, enough is enough, because this is beyond a joke,” she said.
Neighbouring local council areas, such as Moorabool and Brimbank, have returned their maternal and child health services to regular operations and are offering appointments for children up to six years of age.
“I think the problem is that Melton council hasn’t accommodated the growth of all the council suburbs, plain and simple,” Ms Farrugia McGinley said.
“But then they can’t just go, ‘too bad,’… It’s not right.”
Municipal Association of Victorian chief executive Kerry Thompson said the organisation was aware of a small number of councils that were “experiencing trouble” lifting maternal and child health services back to full capacity and were working with the Department of Health and Safer Care Victoria on strategies to help councils.
“Like so many industries across the country, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact our healthcare workforce, including staff furloughs due to positive cases or isolation requirements,” Ms Thompson said.
“It is critical maternal and child health staff take a cautious approach, given they are working with a cohort of patients who cannot currently be vaccinated for COVID-19.”
Melton council cited the scaled-back service was caused by an “unprecedented” increase in the local birth rate, low availability of fully qualified nurses across the state and the impact of the pandemic.
Council chief executive Roslyn Wai said the maternal and child health service was highly valued by council, and it was eager to return it to its full capacity as soon as it had the nurses to do so.
“Melton council is driving an ongoing recruitment campaign to attract more qualified maternal and child health nurses, however there is a known shortage of qualified nurses,” Ms Wai said.
“We’re asking the Victorian government to create incentives for existing nurses to move to maternal and child Health and to create a pipeline of new nurses through additional training and education.”
