Valuable guidance and support for new parents is being provided by a new maternal and child health service in Bacchus Marsh.
Moorabool’s fifth clinic, on the corner of Lerderderg and Gell streets, has been open for two months and has 60 families who regularly attend.
Co-ordinator Robyn Howarth says the $140,000 clinic, opened in response to Moorabool’s baby boom, has been well received. “It’s easy for people to find, and free, so they’re keen to come.”
Birth numbers at Bacchus Marsh and Melton Memorial Hospital have risen 47.1 per cent since 2008-09, when there were 620 births.
In the past year, the number of first-time mothers across the shire has increased 30 per cent.
Ms Howarth said maternal and child health services were crucial. “We want to make sure all these young ones are up to their optimum health and development when they head to primary school.”
The service provides developmental assessments for infants and children, as well as information and support for families. The clinic also links families to specialist services when needed.
Porsche Harrigan, mother of eight-week-old Logan, said expert advice and reassurance were among the many services provided by the clinic’s registered nurses.
“They go through everything and it’s so comforting to know you’re doing the right things, and there’s help there in case you’re not,” she said. ‘‘I know if I need help, they’d be my first port of call.”
The service is open every Wednesday and Thursday. Drop-in sessions are available between 11am and 12.30pm on Thursdays.
» Appointments: 5366 7100
