BAGGARROOK YURRONGI: CULTURALLY SAFE CONTINUITY OF CARE FOR WOMEN HAVING A FIRST NATIONS BABY
Beginning with a large NHMRC Partnership project in 2015, a research team from the Judith Lumley Centre worked with the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation and three tertiary maternity services to develop Baggarrook Yurrongi, meaning ‘Women’s Journey’ in Woiwurrung language. The model provides women having a First Nations baby with pregnancy, birth and postnatal care from a known midwife, alongside existing First Nations health services and supports.
The original Baggarrook Yurrongi study achieved a 21-fold increase in access to culturally tailored continuity of midwifery care, increasing from 34 to more than 700 First Nations families over three years, with 90% uptake among women offered the model. Women reported feeling emotionally and physically supported, safe and reassured in their relationship with their midwife, and described the care as accessible, flexible and personal. The project also improved identification and documentation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status for mothers and babies through staff education and changes to procedures and systems.
Newly published findings provide strong evidence that the model is associated with improved health outcomes for First Nations babies. Babies whose mothers received Baggarrook Yurrongi had 45% higher adjusted odds of being born healthy, were 33% less likely to have low birthweight, 36% less likely to be born preterm and 30% less likely to require neonatal special or intensive care. Women receiving the model were also 86% more likely to commence breastfeeding. These findings strengthen the evidence that culturally tailored continuity of midwifery care can improve both access to care and perinatal outcomes for First Nations families.
The model has continued beyond the original study and is now entering a further phase of expansion. A new MRFF-funded project is supporting the co-design, implementation and evaluation of locally tailored models across metropolitan and regional Victoria. Bendigo Health, Mildura Base Public Hospital, Bayside Health Peninsula and Eastern Health are currently active partners, with discussions underway with additional sites. The long-term vision is for all women having a First Nations baby in Victoria to have access to locally led, culturally tailored caseload midwifery care.
The new work is co-led by Aunty Gina Bundle and Professor Della Forster and continues to build First Nations research and workforce capacity through research training, employment and leadership opportunities.
Published August 2026.