By Leon Georgiou
A MOUNT Gambier GP obstetrician will hold a free preconception counselling session in a bid to reduce complexities experienced during pregnancy and childbirth.
Dr Monique Kanters said the Before the Baby session would help couples plan for pregnancy to increase their chance of having an uneventful labour.
Held at the Mount Gambier Library on May 27 from 6.30pm, Dr Kanters aimed to give the community access to accurate medical information prior to falling pregnant.
“I think in the long term, we need to get good information out there to people, not just whatever they’ve happened to get on Google,” Dr Kanters said.
Dr Kanters has noted a rise in births in the district, accompanied by an increase in complexities experienced during childbirth.
Some issues can be attributed to well-known causes, such as the harmful effects of smoking during pregnancy, which Dr Kanters said remained a minor ongoing issue within the community.
Other issues are more widespread and can be attributed to the general increase in the average age of women falling pregnant.
“We do have a fairly young-ish cohort of mothers here, but we’re also seeing more women at the older end of the spectrum, in their 30s and even into their 40s. (These women) may tend towards having more complicated medical issues,” she said.
Dr Kanters said weight remained another big issue, explaining it was harder for women with a high Body Mass Index (BMI) score to conceive a child.
Similarly, men with a high BMI are more likely to encounter fertility problems.
Dr Kanters also points out that from a facilities perspective, the Mount Gambier and Districts Health Service is unable to facilitate women with a BMI score of 45 (the extreme obesity category),
“Ultimately, these women have to be referred to larger centres for their antenatal care, as well as their deliveries, which is not ideal… we like to be able to offer services locally, but we do have limitations on us because of the level of complexity that comes with those really high BMI scores,” she said.
Dr Kanters also noted that the preconception session was not just designed for women.
“There are things that the guys have to do as well, so this is not just a women’s only session because it’s a team effort, and both members of the team have to be up to scratch really.”
Depending on the interest, Dr Kanters hoped to increase the frequency of sessions each year.
Contact Carolyn Collins on 0459 816 661 or email carolyn.collins@sa.gov.au to register your interest with bookings essential.
