First Nations mothers
Identifying First Nations women
Information identifying mothers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin (First Nations mothers) who died is collected as part of the NMMDC. In maternal death notifications, an ‘Indigenous status’ data item has been collected for cases categorised as: direct maternal deaths since 1970; and for indirect and incidental deaths since 1991.There is not clarity around how 'Indigenous status’ data item information was obtained over time (directly from the individual or not). The term 'First Nations mothers' is used in this report to refer to mothers identified as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin in the NMMDC.
From 2006 onwards (when a consistent definition of ‘not stated’ for the ‘Indigenous status’ data item became available), the proportion of maternal deaths where ‘Indigenous status’ was not stated has decreased from 20% in 2006–2008 to 5% in 2021–2023.
Maternal deaths amongst First Nations women
In 2021–2023, there were 7 deaths of First Nations mothers (an MMR of 15); 3 were direct deaths and 4 were indirect.
While the MMR for First Nations women remains higher than that of non-Indigenous women, the rate of maternal death for First Nations women has consistently decreased over the most recent four triennia, from 24 (9 deaths) in 2012–2014 to 15 (7 deaths) in 2021–2023.
Caution should be taken when interpreting the MMR for First Nations women. This is due to the relatively small number of First Nations women giving birth annually and variation in definitions and data quality over time (see Technical notes for more information).
Figure 6.1: Maternal mortality ratios (MMR) by maternal Indigenous status, Australia, 1991–1993 to 2021–2023
Line graph showing the MMR for First Nations women from 1991 to 2023, the MMR for Other women from 1991 to 2005, and the MMR for Non-indigenous women from 2006 to 2023. There has been a decrease in the MMR for First Nations women from the 2012–2014 triennium.
Causes of death for First Nations mothers
Due to the relatively small number of First Nations mothers in the NMMDC, data for 2014–2023 are presented in this section.
In 2014–2023, there were 21 deaths of First Nations mothers (Figure 6.2, see supplementary table 19 – Data tables: Maternal deaths in Australia, 2021–2023). The most common causes of death for First Nations mothers were sepsis (24%, 5 deaths) and cardiovascular disease (19%, 4 deaths).
Figure 6.2: Causes of maternal deaths, First Nations women, Australia, 2014–2023
| Cause | Number of maternal deaths |
|---|---|
| Sepsis | 5 |
| Cardiovascular disease | 4 |
| Thromboembolism | 4 |
| Substance use complications | 2 |
| Suicide | 2 |
| Amniotic fluid embolism | 1 |
| Anaesthetic-related deaths | 1 |
| Epilepsy | 1 |
| Obstetric haemorrhage | 1 |
1. Includes maternal deaths classified as direct or indirect and maternal deaths not further classified.
2. Data for Western Australia are not consistently available over this time period and are excluded from this figure.
3. Data for non-Indigenous women available in Supplementary Table 19.
Source:
AIHW analysis of the National Maternal Mortality Data Collection. Supplementary Table 19.