95bFM Proposal announced to extend maternity stay periods
April 7, 2025
Interview by Castor Chacko, adapted by Vivek Panchal
A government proposal has been made to extend maternity hospital stay periods, from 48 hours to 72 hours.
Senior Lecturer of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Auckland, Charlotte Oysten, told 95bFM’s The Wire that this proposed change would help parents become more comfortable with being new parents with longer support from hospitals.
“There's a lot going on in those first few days after birth for the birthing parents: there's obviously some pain, you're establishing breastfeeding, there are mood changes, there's perineal and bladder care and having a little bit of extra time to facilitate that in a maternity care setting could be really important for some people.”
Oysten says that extending stay periods could also alleviate internalised or real pressure to move on from their stay in hospital.
Despite approving of the proposed changes to stay time for mothers and birthing parents, Oysten says more can be done to better support parents, especially amid the cost-of-living crisis.
“I'm really supportive of increasing funding to maternity services and expanding the choices that new parents have to support the well-being of both themselves and their babies.”
