Announcing the Birth of Caesarean Awareness Network Australia

100 women, partners and health care professionals attended the launch of a new national consumer advocacy organisation on the 10th September. The Caesarean Awareness Network Australia aims to provide a voice for the nearly 1 in 3 women affected by caesarean surgery. The launch was held on the eve of National Caesarean Awareness Day.

“Our main focus is reaching women who are currently not receiving correct information about caesareans and birth after caesarean, and those needing support to heal after caesarean,” said National Spokesperson Cas McCullough.

“We aim to do this in a number of ways.

“Through a focused national publicity campaign, we aim to draw attention to CANA’s website, www.canaustralia.net, a magazine-style online publication. We envisage CANA being utilised nationally as a “call centre” for women needing information about caesareans. Women needing information and support can be directed via links to their closest support centre, or through phone contact/email. We hope to also attract those women who would perhaps not initially contact local support groups as they may feel too damaged to birth again, or not believe that such groups catered for their needs.

“The other way CANA will have a presence in our community is through advocating for women on a systems level politically, such as taking an active role in raising awareness and concern about the current BAC trial (for more info on this see www.canaustralia.net/advocacy.htm).

“CANA will be asking hospitals and health policy makers to formulate policies based on primary research evidence as well as taking into account the social, cultural, psychological and physical needs of women. This can only be done by involving consumers in policy formation.

“We formed the group because we could see enormous gaps in our community’s education about all issues concerning caesareans, and a huge number of women stranded without support, merely because they just did not know where to turn. But we are planning to change all that.

“There’s a lot of misinformation out there but through CANA women will be enabled to access current evidence, research and information about caesareans. Whether a woman has a caesarean or a vaginal delivery, she deserves to be given full and accurate information to inform her decisions and enhance her experience of birth for the wellbeing of herself, her baby and her family.”

CANA can be found online at www.canaustralia.net or via email: info@canaustralia.net.