Shared Maternity Care Workshop 1: Declining patients and Abnormal ultrasound and placental findings

Over two evening webinars, the annual Shared Maternity Care Collaborative workshops cover important antenatal topics. Join leading obstetrician and gynaecology experts from Northern Hospital, Mercy Health, the Royal Women’s Hospital, and Western Health.

This session explores the complex reasons why patients may decline recommended antenatal or intrapartum care and how such decisions intersect with reported experiences of birth trauma. The presentation will cover trauma-informed care principles and practical strategies to support shared decision-making and respectful maternity care. 

Speakers will guide participants through common and significant abnormal findings on routine first and second-trimester ultrasounds, including placental concerns. The session will help GPs and antenatal providers understand the implications of these findings and appropriate next steps in care and referral.

Speakers

Dr Gill Paulsen

Dr Gill Paulsen is the Clinical Director of Obstetrics for the Mercy Hospital for Women. In addition to this senior leadership role, she works as an Obstetrician in both public and private. Gill has a focus on quality improvement and has led numerous projects, including the introduction of the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) for caesarean section implementation, the National Preterm Birth Prevention Project, the Safer Babies Project, the Better Births project and currently the Operative Vaginal Birth Bundle implementation. She is closely involved with adverse patient safety event review processes, manages obstetric patient feedback for the hospital and also runs the Obstetric Debrief Clinic. Her driving goal is to provide patient centred, collaborative, safe care to mothers and families.

Dr Peter Jurcevic

A Head of Obstetrics at The Royal Women’s Hospital and with a private practice at Frances Perry House, Dr Peter Jurcevic provides dedicated, personalised expert care through your pregnancy and the delivery of your baby. Dr Peter specialises in diagnosis, treatment, and care of endometriosis and IUD insertion. His expertise spans an array of services such as abnormal bleeding and pap smears, menstrual disorders, fibroids and more.

Learning outcomes:

• Explain the ethics of declining recommended obstetric care and outline the practical management of these situations
• Identify the types and precipitants of birth trauma, the role of GPs in providing postnatal debriefing and options for ongoing care for patients
• Interpret key abnormal findings on 12, 20, 22, week obstetric ultrasounds, including placental abnormalities, and explain appropriate referral pathways.

Be sure to register for both webinars sessions.

Registration page - Shared Care Maternity session 2 (Sept 23)