Private Maternity Services - FAQs

NT Health will not provide private maternity services.

NT Health has worked in partnership with private health insurers and private providers to develop and support alternative private maternity models.

Following the closure of the Darwin Private Hospital maternity ward, private patients are no longer able to give birth in, or stay at the private hospital.

Women whose care is led by a private obstetrician or private midwife have access to birthing facilities, operating theatres and equipment in the Royal Darwin Hospital.

Private maternity packages include:

• Private obstetrician-led care
• Private midwife-led care
• Private patient post-natal packages including a hotel retreat and go home sooner option.

Private health insurers, Medibank, Bupa and the Australian Health Service Alliance will fund packages for private patients.

Negotiations are underway with HCF, nib and the Australian Regional Health Group to fund packages for their members.

If you are a private patient, covered by another fund please email info.nthealthprivatematernity@nt.gov.au and NT Health will contact your fund to determine if it will cover the maternity packages.

Maternity services provided by NT Health will continue to be available. Read more about birthing services in the Top End.

Patients who wish to be treated by their chosen practitioner and/or access the private maternity packages must elect to be treated as a private patient.

Patients who elect to be treated as a private patient are entitled to MBS rebates and private health insurance-related rebates.

Patient’s will receive informed financial consent prior to admission confirming their health insurance eligibility, rebate coverage and any excess amount due as per their insurance policy.

NT Health has arrangements in place with private health insurers to rebate the private maternity packages.

In Australia, doctors and health care providers set their own fees. It’s important to ask for a cost estimate before agreeing to any treatment so you can make an informed decision about whether to proceed.

Before your treatment, you have the right to ask your doctor or health care provider, your health insurer, and the hospital about any potential out-of-pocket expenses—commonly referred to as a ‘gap’ payment. Being informed about the cost of your care in advance is called Informed Financial Consent (IFC).

• NT Health acknowledges the challenging and unexpected situation faced by women who had pre-booked maternity care with Darwin Private Hospital.
• NT Health is required to provide patients who elect to be private patients with informed financial consent (IFC). This requires patients to provide their details so NT Health can determine their eligibility and any out-of-pocket costs.
• NT Health will contact patients individually to provide appropriate IFC information, aligned with their insurance policy coverage.
• NT Health continues to work with private health insurers to cover excess costs for women who were pre-booked with Darwin Private Hospital prior to Healthscope’s announcement to discontinue maternity services.
• At this stage, NT Health is not charging the private health insurance excess for women who were pre-booked with Darwin Private Hospital and have elected to be a private patient at Royal Darwin Hospital.
• This arrangement does not apply to women who have commenced private care following the announcement by Healthscope.

What is Informed Financial Consent?

Informed Financial Consent (IFC) means patients are given clear information about the cost of their treatment including any expected out-of-pocket expenses (or gaps) by all relevant service providers before being admitted to hospital or receiving treatment.

More information:

• Advisory AS18/10: Informed financial consent
• Ombudsmans - Informed financial consent.

Negotiations are underway with HCF, nib and the Australian Regional Health Group to fund packages for their members.

Patients who do not have insurance with Medibank, Bupa, one of the Australian Health Service Alliance funds or the above listed funds are encouraged to contact info.nthealthprivatematernity@nt.gov.au and NT Health will reach out to your fund to determine if a package can be covered for you.

NT Health will continue to negotiate with health insurers to emphasise the benefit of funding innovative models of maternity care in the Northern Territory.

As part of the private maternity packages, women will birth their baby at Royal Darwin Hospital supported by their private obstetrician and Royal Darwin Hospital midwives.

Royal Darwin Hospital has a delivery suite and birthing centre, with options for water birth available. It also has a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Special Care Nursery for unwell and premature babies.

New mothers and their babies will be discharged from Royal Darwin Hospital only when it is clinically safe to do so. This is irrelevant of whether you are going home or to a hotel.

You will be provided with detailed information and education about what to expect as part of your post-birth recovery and how to seek assistance if you have clinical concerns about your health or your baby.

The private postnatal packages include a post-natal maternity retreat at a hotel or a return home sooner package.

Midwives will visit new mothers at your home or hotel, to provide clinical care such as wound reviews, postnatal assessments and baby weights, as well as support infant feeding and newborn care. These services are provided for up to 10 days after birth. The same safety and care measures are applied whether mothers are located in the hotel or in their home.

Postnatal retreat package

A comfortable room at the Mercure Resort Airport Darwin where families can enjoy the first days with their newborn. You will receive daily visits from a midwife to provide aftercare and support. A 24/7 phone number will be available to provide additional midwifery support as required.

Included in the package:

• A private suite including king size bed, and en-suite bathroom
• Kitchenette
• Room service and dining for parents
• Baby change table, baby bath, baby bed and a commemorative newborn wrap and skin care gift
• Nappies and baby wipes
• Towels and linen, including any extras required for post-birth recovery

A fold out couch, accommodating additional space for partners and other small children is included.

Dietary requirements can be accommodated. The mini-bar purchases are at your own cost.

Return home sooner package

This package is for parents who prefer to be at home after the birth of their baby. You will receive daily visits from a midwife to provide aftercare and support. A 24/7 phone number will be available to provide additional midwifery support as required.

Families receive:

• A gift hamper with luxuries for Mum and baby
• One-off cleaning service across bathrooms, kitchens and living areas.
• Meals package home delivered, with food sensitivity options (valid for three months). Vouchers have a three-month expiry.

Postnatal care and support

Royal Darwin Hospital Domiciliary Service

From 1 June 2025, midwifery postnatal care for the private packages including in the home and the hotel, will be provided by the Royal Darwin Hospital Domiciliary Service.

Domiciliary is a postnatal midwifery service available to all women and newborns discharged from Royal Darwin Hospital following birth, for up to 10 days postpartum.

During the first three to five days after birth, midwives will visit you every day at your home or hotel.

These visits provide clinical care such as wound reviews, postnatal assessments, and baby weights, as well as support and education around feeding and newborn care. After this initial period, ongoing support may be provided via telephone, or home visits may continue if needed.

The Domiciliary Service operates seven days a week, between 7:30 am and 4:00 pm. Midwives will contact you to confirm what time the visit will occur.

For women living outside the service’s geographical boundary or those preferring an alternative to home visits, appointments can be scheduled at the Palmerston Health Precinct Clinic or the Royal Darwin Hospital Birth Centre.

Upon discharge from the Domiciliary Service, care will transition to your local community child health nurse and general practitioner (GP).

An after-hours contact line will be available for families accessing private care to call should they have any concerns whilst under the Domiciliary Service. This number will go through to the Royal Darwin Hospital maternity ward.

Privately practising midwife post-natal care service

Midwifery support will transition to a visiting model with 24/7 on-call services through a privately practising midwifery service in the future.

A tender process to procure this service is currently underway and more information about this service will be provided once the process is finalised.

Women will be discharged from Royal Darwin Hospital only when it is clinically safe to do so. Safety is our priority.  Women will be provided with detailed information and education about what to expect in their post-birth recovery and how to seek assistance if they have clinical concerns for themselves or their baby.

Whilst the midwifery support services are transitioning, women will be cared for under the Royal Darwin Hospital Domiciliary Service.

If for any reason, you experience complications, your private obstetrician will be contacted by the midwife and will meet you at the Royal Darwin Hospital Emergency Department to undertake an assessment and provide your clinical care. In the case of an emergency, Royal Darwin Hospital obstetricians will provide care until your private obstetrician arrives. This process ensures that all patients are appropriately triaged by a clinician.

If you have a caesarean birth, you will be able to access the post-natal maternity retreat or the go home sooner package, as soon as it is safe for you to be discharged from the hospital.

If you are seeing a private obstetrician or private midwife, your care will continue with scheduled post-natal appointments.

If you accessed the  post-natal maternity retreat or return home sooner  package as a private patient in the public system, your post-natal care will be transferred to the Domiciliary Service.

Your private clinician will decide when you are ready to transfer to the hotel or home.

If you, or your baby have complex care needs, you may be eligible to access the hotel or home packages at a later date.

Some babies may require care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit or Special Care Nursery at the Royal Darwin Hospital.

Mothers who are well are discharged and the baby remains as an inpatient.

The private patient liaison officer will assist with your private packages during this time.

The Mercure Darwin Airport Resort will provide the post-natal maternity retreat service from 1 June 2025.

A local Darwin supplier will provide the baby bundle and furnish the hotel room with appropriate baby equipment.Finalisation of the Private Practicing Midwife Service is expected to be completed in July.

Additional services, including meal provisions will be ready for 1 June.

NT Health explored the possibility of accessing and utilising the maternity ward at Darwin Private Hospital; however, Healthscope was unable to accommodate this request. A hotel option was developed to try and provide a similar experience to that at a private hospital.

Private patients provided feedback that they wanted a private room with their own ensuite, their support person to be able to stay with them, increased meal choices and a private, quiet environment in which to enjoy the first moments with their baby as a family.

While the post-natal maternity retreat does not replicate the private hospital experience, it does provide a private and peaceful option for families with its own ensuite and meals. The hotel option was developed to provide expectant families with greater choice and is optional.

The clinical environment at Royal Darwin Hospital is unable to support the provision of private accommodation or to facilitate partners or support people to stay overnight.

The Northern Territory Government has requested additional funding from the Commonwealth Government to enhance maternity services at Royal Darwin Hospital butthis will take time.

Due to clinical operational considerations and legal requirements, Darwin Private Hospital is not able to accommodate the transfer of maternity in-patients or out-patients following surgical procedures or for postnatal care.

A private patient liaison officer will be available to help you.

Contact Amanda Lawler on 8999 2509 or at info.nthealthprivatematernity@nt.gov.au.

Private Practicing Midwives have been caring for women in the Northern Territory for many years.

The new private maternity packages allow patients to access private health insurance to contribute to the cost of private midwife services.

The private midwife service is an alternate option to NT Health’s current midwifery group practice available at the Royal Darwin Hospital.

We will provide further details as they become available.

Private Practicing Midwives play a valuable role in strengthening the maternity services workforce.

Supporting Private Practicing Midwives helps expand access to care and enhances continuity of care for pregnant women, aligning with the government's commitment to offer Territory families with a choice of safe maternity care models.

Private Practicing Midwives offer a range of services focused on personalised and continuous care throughout pregnancy, labour, birth, and the postnatal period. This includes antenatal care, labour and birth support, postnatal care, and breastfeeding support.

This care model provides an additional privately insured option for women in the Territory.

Royal Darwin Hospital delivers more than 2000 babies each year and has the resources and facilities available to safely care for expecting families and an anticipated 250 additional births following the closure of Darwin Private Hospital’s maternity ward.

Partners can stay in the delivery suite or birth centre for the duration of the birth and immediate aftercare, usually about four hours.

Single rooms are limited, and it is likely you will share a room with one other mother and baby.

NT Minster for Health, Steven Edgington has written to the Commonwealth Health Minister Mark Butler to seek additional funding to enhance the maternity infrastructure and equipment at Royal Darwin Hospital.

For mum:

• Antenatal Information Record (provided by certain obstetrician’s only)
• Health fund/Medicare card
• Pre-natal information from your obstetrician
• Appropriate clothing for labour and birthing
• Nightware/Nighties/dressing gown
• Comfortable casual clothing and footwear
• Toiletries
• Tissues
• Breastfeeding pads
• Maternity sanitary pads
• Maternity bras and briefs
• Breast Pump (optional)

For your new baby:

• Nightgowns or grow suits
• Singlets
• Nappy change lotion, bath lotion or pure soap (if desired)
• Baby bonnet and dummy (optional)
• Baby wipes
• Baby wraps and blankets
• Disposable nappies if wanting to use these
• Formula, bottles and teats, if not breastfeeding
• Approved car child restraint for discharge home. This is required by law.

Having an age appropriate and properly installed car seat is essential to ensure the safety of your baby.

We recommend you have the child car seat correctly installed before you go home. In Australia, it’s law to have a rear-facing car seat until your baby is at least 6 months old, although it’s recommended to leave it rear-facing for longer. The car seat should meet the Australian and New Zealand Standards.