The team at BTA is so proud to announce a wonderful new partnership with the Queensland Mental Health Commission to improve recognition and care pathways for people affected by birth-related trauma.
Birth-related trauma affects up to one in three women and can have profound and lasting impacts on mental health, physical health, and family wellbeing. Yet sadly, many people report feeling dismissed, misunderstood, or unsupported when they seek help, particularly in primary care settings. That has to change!
Behind every statistic is a real person. Someone who left hospital forever changed.
This is for every person who sat across from their GP and felt like what happened to them didn’t have a name. For every parent who was told “that’s normal” when it wasn’t. For everyone who had to fight to be believed.
We hear you. And we’re working to make sure the next person who walks through that door experiences something different.
“I was concerned about my faecal incontinence and urgency post birth, and she said that’s normal and that it takes time after delivery for things to return as they were.” 😢
“It has taken me 11 months and over 100 appointments for a diagnosis” 😢
“I felt like my GP didn’t understand, and wasn’t very helpful in finding me services. It was difficult to get a referral to speak to someone about my experience, and even then I was basically told ‘oh it just happens sometimes’. I was offered antidepressant medication, which I didn’t want to take”. 😢
General Practitioners are often the first health professionals families turn to after birth. Through this initiative, Birth Trauma Australia will expand its ThinkNatal™ GP education program, providing trauma-informed clinical guidance, compassionate communication tools, and clearer pathways to specialised support. The program aims to strengthen GP confidence, enable earlier identification of trauma, and improve healthcare experiences and outcomes for women and families.
“Honestly if it wasn’t for my GP, I wouldn’t be in the position I’m in today. He guided me every step of the way, through one of the hardest periods of my life. He guided me through treatment, helped me navigate medications, and made sure he found the right neurologist and more. I felt listened to, heard in a time when I had lost trust in medical professionals.” We need more of these stories.
Amy Dawes OAM, CEO of Birth Trauma Australia, said the partnership represents an important step forward in addressing a long-recognised gap in perinatal care.
“GPs play a pivotal role across the perinatal journey, but parents feel their birth trauma is not recognised or understood in primary care. By working together with the Queensland Mental Health Commission, we can ensure GPs have the knowledge, tools, and referral pathways needed to provide truly trauma-informed support.”
“We look forward to working alongside the Commission, healthcare partners, and the birth trauma community to create safer, more compassionate care pathways for families.”
If you would like to support or be involved in the ThinkNatal GP program and partnership, please complete this short online survey:
https://brisbanenorthphn.org.au/research-survey/thinknatal-gp-project-short-survey
Read more about this partnership news on the Queensland Mental Health Commission website: https://www.qmhc.qld.gov.au/about/funding/strengthening-gp-care-for-people-experiencing-birth-related-trauma
