Summary

Australia’s mothers and babies 2018—in brief presents an overview of the key statistics from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) National Perinatal Data Collection. The corresponding online data visualisations complement this report.

Detailed data tables, including state and territory data, are also available.

This report and the data visualisations are part of a comprehensive program of AIHW work on maternal and perinatal care and outcomes. Other major projects include:

  • National Core Maternity Indicators (NCMIs) data visualisations. The NCMIs monitor the safety and quality of maternity care to ensure continual improvement following the introduction of the National Maternity Services Plan (AHMC 2011)
  • National Maternity Data Development Project (NMDDP). The NMDDP aims to build a more comprehensive and consistent national data collection for maternal and perinatal health, including developing clinical data items and maternity models of care and establishing ongoing national maternal and perinatal mortality data collection and reporting
  • reporting of maternal and perinatal indicators in the Australian Health Performance Framework. The framework presents geographic data for indicators on antenatal care in the first trimester, smoking during pregnancy, and low birthweight.