Nomenclature for Models of Care

Project Name: Nomenclature for Models of Care
Commencement: 2011
Expected Completion: 2013
Funding Source: AIHW
Project Status: current
Project Officers: Natasha Donnolley & Liz Stokes

Working Party Members' Access

Background:

This project is one component of the National Maternity Data Development (NMDD) project. A key platform of the National Maternity Services Plan set out under Priority Action 4.1 is that the implementation of innovative and progressive models of maternity care around Australia is supported by a comprehensive evidence base and operates with a sound safety and quality system. Good quality maternity information is required to monitor changing practice and ensure that the outcomes for mothers and babies are maintained.

Aims:

This project seeks to develop a coherent system of nomenclature that will encompass the entire range of models of maternity care proposed across all Australian states and territories.

Method:

A review of policy documents and other reports of current and proposed practice will be undertaken. The review will describe the defining features of the various models of care. This will inform the development of a coherent system for nomenclature for models of maternity care.
A national inter-jurisdictional working party has been set up specifically to comment on the review, nomenclature and consultation documents produced by this project.

Significance:

Nomenclature for models of care underpins the process of developing the data element(s) to capture the information that will describe maternity services provided to women during pregnancy, birth and postnatally consistently and coherently across all jurisdictions. The lack of consistent nomenclature was recognised from the inception of the NMDDP as a gap in maternity information.
This component of the NMDDP relates directly to and the results of the nomenclature will inform the third part to the project: Addressing the data gaps identified in meeting national maternity information needs.