Summary

AIHW information on mothers and babies

Australia’s mothers and babies 2015—in brief presents an overview of the key statistics from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) National Perinatal Data Collection. The AIHW’s online perinatal data visualisations complements this report.

Detailed supplementary data tables, including state and territory data, are also available online from the AIHW website. This report and the perinatal dynamic data display are part of a comprehensive program of AIHW work in relation to maternal and perinatal care and outcomes.

Other major projects are:

  • National Core Maternity Indicators (NCMIs) data visualisations and reports. The NCMIs monitor the safety and quality of maternity care to ensure there is continual improvement following the introduction of the National Maternity Services Plan (AHMC 2011)
  • National Maternity Data Development Project (NMDDP), latest report. The aim of the NMDDP is to build a more comprehensive and consistent national data collection for maternal and perinatal health, including development of clinical data items and maternity models of care and the establishment of ongoing national maternal and perinatal mortality data collection and reporting
  • geographic reporting of maternal and perinatal indicators from the Performance Accountability Framework, to be published in 2018. This publication will present detailed geographic data for indicators on antenatal care in the first trimester, smoking during pregnancy and low birthweight.

The National Perinatal Data Collection

The National Perinatal Data Collection (NPDC) began in 1991 and is a collaborative effort by the AIHW and state and territory health departments.

Perinatal data are collected for each birth in each state and territory by midwives and other birth attendants. The data are collated by the relevant state or territory health department and a standard de-identified extract is provided to the AIHW on an annual basis to form the NPDC.

The NPDC covers both live births and stillbirths, where gestational age is at least 20 weeks or birthweight is at least 400 grams, except in Victoria and Western Australia, where births are included if gestational age is at least 20 weeks or, if gestation is unknown, birthweight is at least 400 grams.

See Appendix A for more information about the NPDC. Australia’s mothers and babies 2015—in brief Appendixes A to D