Mother and baby mental health unit for Nambour

Nicklin MP Marty Hunt and Minister Tim Nichols with Sunshine Coast mum Deneale Davies with daughter Scottie.

Sunshine Coast mothers experiencing serious mental health challenges after childbirth will be able to receive specialist hospital care without being separated from their babies under a $27 million project at Nambour General Hospital.

The new eight-bed Mother and Baby Unit will provide short to medium-term acute mental health care in a purpose-built, therapeutic environment.

Mothers admitted to the unit will remain with their babies while receiving treatment, allowing them to maintain close contact with partners, other children, grandparents and wider support networks.

The unit will address a gap in specialist perinatal mental health care on the Sunshine Coast and reduce the need for families to travel to Brisbane or the Gold Coast for treatment.

Member for Nicklin Marty Hunt said keeping families connected could make a significant difference during a particularly difficult period.

“Keeping mums and babies close to partners, children, grandparents and their support networks while they receive specialist care can make an enormous difference,” Mr Hunt said.

“This $27 million investment at Nambour General Hospital is about giving local families confidence that when they need specialised mental health support, high-quality care will be available closer to home.”

The Nambour facility is part of a statewide investment of more than $160 million from Queensland’s Mental Health Levy to expand perinatal mental health services.

The program is expected to deliver 30 additional public mother-and-baby mental health beds across Queensland.

Services will allow mothers to receive acute specialist care in their homes while remaining with their babies and families.

The expanded services will complement existing Mother and Baby Units at Mater South Brisbane and Gold Coast University Hospital.

Health Minister Tim Nicholls said the Nambour unit would ensure mothers could access specialist treatment while remaining close to their babies.

Perinatal mental health difficulties can emerge during pregnancy or following childbirth, placing significant pressure on mothers and their families. Specialist mother-and-baby units are designed to treat serious conditions while protecting the bond between a mother and her infant.

Planning and procurement details for the Nambour unit, including its expected construction and opening dates, have not yet been announced.

New Nambour unit to help keep mums & babies together

Sunshine Coast mum Deneale Davies knows how important it is for mothers receiving acute mental health care to remain with their babies.

Ms Davies had enjoyed a healthy pregnancy and had no history of serious mental health challenges before her daughter Scottie was born at Cairns Hospital in April last year.

But five days after giving birth, and without having slept, her GP recognised she was struggling.

“It’s not what I expected for myself,” Ms Davies said.

“I never had anxiety or depression, I was fit and healthy.”

Ms Davies had two stays at Cairns Hospital, where she received mental health support while separated from Scottie.

She was then offered a place at Gold Coast Health’s Lavender House, where Scottie could stay with her while she received specialist treatment.

Ms Davies spent two months at the mother and baby mental health unit before returning to Cairns in August.

“Mother and baby units have been amazing for our family,” she said.

“The unit made the world of a difference, especially with mine and Scottie’s bond, and then also with my mental health.

“I was already at a low and had I not had Scottie there with me after going through birth, carrying her for nine months, I think that would have been detrimental even further to my mental health, and so I do think having her with me made the biggest difference.

“The Lavender Unit really, truly was the biggest blessing in actually my whole family’s life.”

Ms Davies continued using the strategies and support from her stay to rebuild her independence and, by the beginning of this year, said she was no longer anxious and had returned to her regular life.

Her family moved to the Sunshine Coast late last year, where an eight-bed Mother and Baby Unit will now be built at Nambour General Hospital.