Toi Te Ora Public Health held their Healthy Pregnancies Education Day in Rotorua recently
Healthy pregnancies
for healthy generations
Every two years, Toi Te Ora Public Health
facilitates the Healthy Pregnancies Education
Day where a range of speakers share
evidence and practice on how best to support
pregnant women with their own health and
wellbeing and also that of their babies.
Evidence shows that the first thousand days
of a child’s life – from conception, through
pregnancy and into early childhood – is a
crucial period of development. For example,
the right nutrition and physical activity
during this time can help reduce a child’s
risk of developing obesity, diabetes and
heart disease, and provide a good foundation
for optimum growth and health across the
lifespan.
The fourth Healthy Pregnancies Education
Day was held recently in Rotorua
and attended by more than 80 health
professionals, including midwives and lead
maternity carers, from both Bay of Plenty
and Lakes District Health Board areas.
Guest speakers discussed local services
available for hapū mama, including
smokefree services, green prescriptions,
maternal immunisations, and healthy
homes initiatives. Highlights included
Auckland University Associate Professor
Susan Morton’s insights from the Growing
Up in New Zealand longitudinal study,
Professor Hayden McRobbie’s presentation
on smokefree pregnancies, and Dr Donna
Cormack’s discussion on racism and health
impacts for mothers and babies. Participants,
who share a collective passion for providing
excellent pre-pregnancy and ante-natal care,
found the presentations, question sessions
and networking opportunities valuable and
useful for their practice.
For more information on the Healthy
Pregnancies Education Day see www.
ttophs.govt.nz/healthy_pregnancies_health_
professionals.
Midweek worst
time for workplace
accidents
We may not like Mondays and we may be a bit
distracted on Fridays, but in fact statistics show
Bay of Plenty people are more likely to go to
hospital after having a workplace injury in the
middle of the week.
Latest data collected by the Midland Trauma
System (MTS), which covers Bay of Plenty,
Lakes, Taranaki, Waikato and Tairawhiti
District Health Boards shows:
• Just over half
of the workplace
injuries requiring
hospitalisation in
the past five years
in the Midland
health region
were on Tuesdays,
Wednesdays or
Thursdays.
• A total of 2912 work place injuries required
a hospital admission costing of $23 million.
That's nearly 600 events at a cost of $4.7
million per year.
• Workplace injuries in the Bay of Plenty are
most likely to occur in the industrial setting,
followed by farming as the main c