Gastroenteritis breakthrough Ending preventable stillbirths

Stillbirth is devastating for any family, and Dr Miranda Davies-Tuck is working to better understand why it happens. A 2022 study by Dr Davies-Tuck’s team published in The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, March 2022, looked at all births in Victoria between 2010 and 2018, finding that full-term stillbirth rates have reduced, but the overall stillbirth rate has remained at approximately six babies per day. That means preterm deaths are on the rise. This strengthens her focus on research to reduce pre-term stillbirths. After previously establishing that women of South Asian origin (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka) have a higher risk of stillbirth in late pregnancy, she recommended more fetal monitoring for this group. Those clinical changes have now been incorporated into clinical guidelines nationally. In 2022, the team took this research further by talking to those mothers – many of whom do not have English as their native language –about their experience of these clinical changes. The findings showed that better communication is just as important as better monitoring in making sure both mother and baby have a positive birth experience.

Collaborators Monash Health; Monash University Funder Red Nose Australia

“This is the first time the voices of South Asian women have been captured in regard to stillbirth prevention strategies.”

Dr Miranda Davies-Tuck