Media Release
Date: 31 December 2014
Survey Shows Satisfaction with Waikato Maternity Services Keeps Improving
A snapshot survey of 144 women across the Waikato shows high level of satisfaction with the maternity services they
received.
All the women were using maternity services – including Waikato Hospital wards, women’s outpatient services, rural and
primary birthing services – during the last week of November 2014.
The survey follows a similar one in December 2013, and is part of the Waikato DHB’s wider maternity improvement
programme that is starting to pay big dividends.
Results include 90 percent of women being happy or very happy with their antenatal care, 84 percent happy or very happy
with their birth care, and 81 percent happy or very happy with their postnatal care. The latter two are improvements on
the previous year’s survey results.
Clinical midwife director Corli Roodt said the survey aims to identify both areas of strength and areas for improvement,
and to make sure maternity services are meeting women’s needs.
“We are grateful to the women who gave their time to complete the survey. Their feedback is a really important way to
keep improving,” she said.
“This year the results were fairly similar to last year, and the survey once again indicates that on the whole women are
satisfied with maternity services in the Waikato.”
She said the services will follow up where women commented on areas that needed improvement, including pregnancy and
parenting services, and access to scanning services.
“These two areas were identified last year as well, and we have already started to make good progress on them.”
Other areas identified as needing improvements in the previous survey were communication between doctors, midwives and
lead maternity carers (LMCs) particularly in antenatal clinics; reduction in wait times for induction of labour; and
access to antenatal classes.
“In the past 12 months we have worked hard on those issues and I’m pleased to say they are now appearing in the latest
survey in the list of things women felt worked well,” Ms Roodt said.
Summary of survey results November 2014 survey:
• 93% of women reported registering with an LMC as easy or very easy.
• 82% of women reported being registered with an LMC at 12 weeks or earlier. 7% improvement on last year
• 83% reported of women reported they had access to all the services they needed or wanted.
• 90% of women reported they were happy or very happy with the standard of their Antenatal care. The same as last year.
• 84% of women reported they were happy of very happy with their birth care. 5% improvement on last year.
• 81% of women reported they were happy or very happy with their postnatal care. 3% improvement on last year.
The survey was completed by all women represented of the birthing population: 58% NZ European, 25% Maori, 4% Indian, 2%
Chinese and 11% other.
Birth locations
At Home 5%
Primary birthing unit 23%
Waikato Hospital 58%
Other location 2%
No Response 12%
ends