Greater Dandenong councillors have strongly opposed Monash Health’s proposed downgrades of critical maternity services at Dandenong Hospital.
Councillor Rhonda Garad, who holds a PhD in public health, authored the motion to the council and said the fight has only just begun against the proposal.
“We want our mothers, sister and our women to have confidence that if they have to go Dandenong Hospital, they will get the care they need and not be in a stressful situation to be shipped off to somewhere else to get care.
“This is not fair. If you’re going to take resources, don’t take it from us,” she said.
“This is outrageous that they are stripping from us the critical care nurses which means, many midwives might go from our hospital because they don’t want to risk their registration to deal with situations they can’t cope with.
“When Monash thought they could do this, they did not know how strong push-back is going to be from the staff. They didn’t count on us who will not stand for this.”
According to Monash Health’s Change of Impact Statement 2025 there are significant changes proposed for the hospital’s maternity service.
There would be cuts to beds to the birth suite and maternity ward, with three special care nursery cots integrated into the maternity ward.
Neonatal specialist nurses will be replaced by midwives in managing the nursery, and the maternity capability will be downgraded from level three to two, which means the hospital won’t look after complex pregnancies and newborns.
High-risk pregnancies and complex cases will instead be transported to Casey Hospital, or Monash Medical Centre and Monash Children’s Hospital, while Dandenong Hospital’s neonatal specialists will be redeployed.
Separately, in case of an emergency in Dandenong, vulnerable mothers will have to be rushed to Casey or Clayton locations (based on capacity) in an ambulance.
In an unanimous motion on 24 November, the council calls to cease or halt the possible implementation of the downgrades pending an impact review including an Options and Impact Assessment being made public.
The council will also advocate for a locally accessible, culturally safe model of care to keep mothers and babies together without reducing the hospital service.
Cr Garad shared she had her fourth child at Dandenong Hospital, similarly councillors Jim Memeti and Bob Milkovic also shared the birth of their children at the hospital was a “fantastic” and “wonderful experience.”
“This to me is very concerning that if somebody goes to Dandenong Hospital to deliver a baby and unfortunately if something goes wrong, they have to go somewhere,” Cr Memeti said.
“As somebody who has lived in the community for 50 years I actually couldn’t believe they can think of doing this to a community that won’t be able to deal with it if they have to be relocated somewhere in Victoria.”
Both Crs Memeti and Milkovic had been surprised by the proposed cuts and were quick to back the council’s opposition.
“To have this done by Monash Health, while I understand that we don’t have the power to compel Monash Health (on what to do)… this is not the right move to do,” Cr Milkovic said.
“There should not be any cuts at all. This is a very important hospital for the residents of Greater Dandenong and wider.
“Everybody that I know and spoken to have had a wonderful experience.
“The birth might not always go according to plan but the staff was always there to support residents and wider and to have Monash Health cuts services in any way shape or form I think is a very, very bad move.
“Our community deserves as good as care as possible.”
The cuts will displace up to 700 women a year according to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) state secretary Maddy Harradence.
“This proposed change could lead to significant and unsafe capacity and demand issues at Casey Hospital and reduced service provision and increased clinical risk for a large population of women in one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse communities in Victoria.
“Women who were planning to have their baby at Dandenong Hospital will be distressed at the thought of having to relocate further away from home for their birthing needs or to visit their unwell baby who could have been cared for close to home at Dandenong Hospital.”
A Monash Health spokesperson says birth rates at Dandenong Hospital have “remained steady” whilst in Casey it continues to rise.
They say they are placing services where “demand is highest.”
They also claim 10 per cent of the 2,500 births every year in Dandenong are high risk and planned for Casey Hospital or Monash Medical Centre.
“Under our proposal, higher-risk pregnancies and newborns who require specialist care will be managed at Casey Hospital or Monash Medical Centre and Monash Children’s Hospital, where the necessary expertise and resources are concentrated to ensure the safest possible outcomes for mothers and babies.”
A Victorian government spokesperson says the proposals are supported by Safer Care Victoria and “involve full consultation”.
“Monash Health’s proposed changes come from clinical experts and respond to shifting demand in Melbourne’s south-east, to make sure care is delivered where it’s needed most.”
Dandenong MP Gabrielle Williams says health services structures should always be clinically-led.
“It is important that maternity and newborn care continue to be available locally, and that complex cases be handled at the most clinically appropriate location with the best available expertise – this is what will ensure the strongest health outcomes for both mother and baby.”
If the cuts are made, Dandenong Hospital is said to be one of the few public hospitals that can’t care for mothers and newborns of complex cases.
Concerns are also raised on whether Casey has the ability to absorb extra births from Dandenong via ambulance.
A Monash Health internal document shows Casey’s special care nursery has been at capacity and over for most days with its birth suite at a limit, according to ANMF analysis.
Greater Dandenong council officers will also write to MPs Julian Hill, Gabrielle Williams, Lee Tarlamis and Ann-Marie Hermans, Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas, opposition health spokesperson Georgie Crozier, as well as Monash Health’s board and chief executive to request a suspension of the cuts, pending full community consultation and impact review.
