The Select Committee has been established to inquire into and report on:

a) best practice approaches to postpartum healthcare, including the delivery of physical and mental health support and services for mothers and their partners including those who have experienced infant loss;

b) women's experiences in the postpartum period, including the physical, psychological, emotional and economic impacts of birth;

c) best practice pregnancy and postpartum care models to support long-term maternal physical and mental health;

d) the cost and accessibility of postpartum healthcare, including: infant feeding supports, mental health supports and services, physiotherapy services, including pelvic health services, and related allied health services;

e) antenatal and postpartum reproductive health support and education, including contraceptive care;

f) research, education and training on pregnancy and postpartum care for healthcare professionals working in maternal care;

g) existing Commonwealth, state and territory government policies, programs and healthcare initiatives addressing postpartum care;

h) data collection, reporting and monitoring processes and allocation of research efforts relating to postpartum healthcare;

i) the ways in which women and girls experience recurrent, severe, or long-lasting pain conditions;

j) women's experience in seeking appropriate healthcare responses to pain, including experiences of medical misogyny;

k) barriers to effective pain management, including the range and affordability of available treatments;

l) best practice approaches to assisted reproduction treatments;

m) access and affordability issues relating to fertility and assisted reproduction treatments;

n) the regulation of medical devices used in women's healthcare treatments, including risk assessments, monitoring and reporting;

o) the role of relevant regulators and other agencies in responding to complaints regarding medical devices;

p)and any related matters.

So what next?

The voices of those with lived experience of issues related to postpartum health, care provision and treatment deserve to be heard. You might have experienced it yourself, you may have witnessed your partner, friend or relative experience it, you may be an organisation or business who cares about this issue. Either way, we encourage you all to make a submission.

Ways we can help you?

1. Follow our instructions for making a submission yourself using the template link above.

2. If you'd like extra support we can help you with the submission. Share your story with us and we can write it for you and submit on your behalf. Use the contact us button below and we can arrange for someone to support you.