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The engagement of clinicians with employing organisations and with the broader health system results in better safer care for patients. Concerns about the adequacy of clinician engagement in the state of Victoria led the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services to commission a scoping study. During this investigation more than 100 clinicians were spoken with and 1800 responded to surveys. The result was creation of a clear picture of what engagement and disengagement looked like at all levels - from the clinical microsystem to state health policy making. Multiple interventions are possible to enhance clinician engagement and thus the care of future patients. A framework was developed to guide future Victorian work with four elements: setting the agenda, informing, involving and empowering clinicians. Concepts of work or employee engagement that are used in other industries don't directly translate to healthcare and thus the definition of engagement chosen for use centred on involvement. This was designed to encourage system managers to ensure clinicians are full participants in design, planning and evaluation and in all decisions that affect them and their patients.

Objective: To compare the rates of attempted and successful instrumental births, intrapartum cesarean delivery, and subsequent perinatal and maternal morbidity before and after implementing a training intervention to arrest the decline in forceps competency among resident obstetricians., Methods: This retrospective cohort study examined all attempted instrumental births at Monash Health from 2005 to 2014. We performed an interrupted time-series analysis to compare outcomes of attempted instrumental births in 2005-2009 with those in 2010-2014., Results: There were 72,490 births from 2005 to 2014 at Monash Health, of which 8,789 (12%) were attempted instrumental vaginal births. After the intervention, rates of forceps births increased [autoregressive integrated moving average coefficient (β) 1.5, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.03-1.96; P<.001], and vacuum births decreased (β -1.43, 95% CI -2.5 to -0.37; P<.01). Rates of postpartum hemorrhage decreased (β -1.3, 95% CI -2.07 to -0.49; P=.002) and epidural use increased (β 0.03, 95% CI 0.02-0.05; P<.001). There was no change in rates of unsuccessful instrumental births (β -0.39, 95% CI -3.03 to 2.43; P=.83), intrapartum cesarean delivery (β -0.29, 95% CI -0.55 to 0.14; P=.24), third- and fourth-degree tears (β -1.04, 95% CI -3.1 to 1.00; P=.32), or composite neonatal morbidity (β -0.18, 95% CI -0.38 to 0.02, P=.08). Unsuccessful instrumental births were more likely to be in nulliparous women (P<.001), less likely to have a senior obstetrician present (P<.001), be at later gestation (P<.001), and involved larger birth weight neonates (P<.001)., Conclusion: A policy of ensuring obstetric forceps competency before beginning vacuum training results in more forceps births, fewer postpartum hemorrhages, and no increase in third- and fourth-degree perineal injuries or episiotomies.

Background: The effects of place of birth on birth outcomes have been examined in several studies both locally and internationally. However, none has examined the impact on caesarean section rates of different level maternity hospitals operating within the one health service. This study aimed to examine the impact of place of (Hospital level 6; 4-5 or 4) on birth outcomes in a large metropolitan health service in Victoria., Methods: A cross-sectional study utilising data on births to low-risk first-time mothers during 2010-2011. Data were obtained from the Birthing Outcome System (BOS) database of Monash Health. Unadjusted and adjusted analyses were undertaken using logistic regression to examine the association between place of birth and caesarean section., Results: In this group of low-risk nulliparae, there was evidence of a significant association between place of birth and caesarean section. The lower the acuity of the hospital, the higher the odds for the caesarean section. Compared with the level 6 hospital, the AdjOR for caesarean section at the level 4 hospital was 1.81 (95% CI: 1.37-2.41) and at the level 4-5 hospital, 1.30 (95% CI: 1.0-1.7)., Conclusions: Low-risk nulliparae in spontaneous labour giving birth at the level 4 hospital in this health service are at significantly increased risk of caesarean section. This may have implications for the organisation and resource management of other level 4 public maternity units. Care in a tertiary (level 6) service may not necessarily equate to the higher rates of intervention reported by others., (© 2013 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.)