On 2 December we were part of the Minister for Health's stillbirth roundtable meeting, convened to further develop the National Action Plan to address stillbirth.

It was a very positive meeting, and we were pleased to be able to contribute a strong voice for bereaved parents in discussions about how bereavement and education initiatives will look in the draft plan.

Our focus included the importance of ensuring health professionals are equipped to provide good bereavement care in the crucial time parents can spend with their babies after birth, as well as the need to ensure families are supported by appropriate community organisations after leaving the hospital.

We were delighted with the announcement that Red Nose, Sands and other partners were successful in their bid to develop a new stillbirth public awareness and education campaign. 

We're also particularly excited to work on the details of a project Sands will deliver jointly with Community Hubs Australia, designed to develop a peer education initiative on stillbirth prevention and support for women from culturally and linguistically diverse communities. The program will equip migrant and refugee women from within Community Hubs Australia's extensive network to educate others on stillbirth risks and risk reduction, and to connect them to peer support should they experience stillbirth themselves.

It's expected this plan will be available for wider consultation in the first half of 2020. We'll keep you updated.