The Limerick Declaration on Rural Health Care 2022.

The 19th World Rural Health Conference, hosted in rural Ireland and the University of Limerick, with over 650 participants coming from 40 countries and an additional 1600 engaging online, has carefully considered how best rural communities can be empowered to improve their own health and the health of those around them. The conference also considered the role of national health systems and all stakeholders, in keeping with the commitments made through the Sustainable Development Goals and the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health as one of the fundamental rights of every human being. This conference declaration, the Limerick Declaration on Rural Healthcare, is designed to inform rural communities, academics and policymakers about how to achieve the goal of delivering high quality health care in rural and remote areas most effectively, with a particular focus on the Irish healthcare system. Congruent with current evidence and best international practice, the participants of the conference endorsed a series of recommendations for the creation of high quality, sustainable and cost-effective healthcare delivery for rural communities in Ireland and globally. The recommendations focused on four major themes: rural healthcare needs and delivery, rural workforce, advocacy and policy, and research for rural health care. Equal access to health care is a crucial marker of democracy. Hence, we call on all governments, policymakers, academic institutions and communities globally to commit to providing their rural dwellers with equitable access to health care that is properly resourced and fundamentally patient-centred in its design.

Methodology for the Development of the Australian National Nursing and Midwifery Digital Health Capability Framework.

Internationally healthcare organisations and governments are grappling with the issue of upskilling healthcare workforces in relation to digital health. Significant research has been undertaken in relation to documenting essential digital health capability requirements for the workforce. In 2019 the Australian Digital Health Agency funded work by the Australasian Institute of Digital Health to develop a National Nursing and Midwifery Digital Health Capability Framework. This paper describes the methodological approach used in the development of the Framework.

An interactive decision-making framework (i-DMF) to scale up maternity continuity of carer models.

BACKGROUND: Low numbers of women in Queensland receive continuity of care across their maternity episode. The Office of the Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer was tasked with strengthening maternity service delivery by reviewing and improving Maternity Models of Care and Workforce. AIM: Develop a decision-making framework (DMF) to increase maternity continuity of carer models. METHOD: A literature review of models, specific to the public health maternity system, including suitability to rural areas and culturally appropriate to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women was undertaken. Stakeholders informed development of the framework and toolkit. A prototype was built, tested and refined following input from rural, regional and metropolitan facilities. RESULTS: 42 questions guide services to contextualise delivery of continuity of carer to local circumstances. Three rural sites have applied the i-DMF and toolkit. One used the tool for quality assurance of their existing midwifery continuity model, another has developed a midwifery continuity-of-carer model for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, the other is looking to establish a local rural birth service. CONCLUSION: The i-DMF has potential to grow and sustain best practice maternity care, and particularly enable more women to receive relationship-based care with a known midwife.