Key points
- Each EverNurture midwife runs her own practice, so she manages her own bookings, hours and availability.
- Ask your midwife how to reach her between visits, and what to do outside those hours, when you first make contact.
- If something is urgent, a home visit is not the right service. Call 000, or Healthdirect on 1800 022 222 for advice at any hour.
EverNurture brings four endorsed midwives together, and each one runs her own independent practice. That is worth understanding early, because it shapes what happens when you cannot reach the midwife you have booked with.
Your midwife manages her own availability
There is no shared roster or central booking desk behind the collective. The midwife you choose is the one who arranges your visits, and she sets her own hours and her own areas. When you first make contact, it is worth asking her directly:
- How do I reach you between visits, and how quickly do you usually reply?
- What are your hours, and what should I do outside them?
- Are there days or periods when you are not available?
Her answers are the ones that apply to your care. We cannot answer them on her behalf, because they differ from practice to practice.
If you cannot reach her and it can wait
For a question that is not urgent, leave a message and give her time to come back to you. If you would rather not wait, you are free to contact another EverNurture midwife and ask whether she has availability. Each practice takes its own bookings, so she can tell you where she stands. All four sets of contact details are together on the Book a home visit page.
It helps to tell both midwives what you have done, so nothing about your care gets missed.
If it cannot wait
A midwife home visit is planned care, not an emergency service. If you are worried about your baby or yourself and it will not keep:
- In an emergency, call 000.
- For health advice at any hour, Healthdirect has a registered nurse on 1800 022 222.
- For pregnancy, birth and early parenting questions, Pregnancy, Birth and Baby is on 1800 882 436.
- Your GP, your local hospital maternity unit, or the maternity service where you gave birth can also help.
Our resources page lists these and the other organisations our midwives point families to.
Before you book, ask about it
The simplest way to avoid being caught out is to raise it in the first conversation, alongside fees and Medicare rebates. A midwife will not mind the question. Knowing how to reach her, and what to do when you cannot, is part of feeling settled in your care.
If you are still choosing, the short introductions on Meet the midwives link to each midwife’s own website, and How it works explains the collective in full.