2008 is a landmark year for maternity research in Australia, with the establishment of the Australian Maternity Outcomes Surveillance System (AMOSS): Improving the safety and quality of maternity care in Australia.

The establishment of AMOSS has been funded by the National Health & Medical Research Council (NH&MRC) and will be based at the Perinatal and Reproductive Epidemiology Research Unit (PRERU) at the University of New South Wales.

AMOSS will be established as a national system to study a range of serious, but rare obstetric complications and disorders of pregnancy, which are thought to contribute significantly to the burden of maternal morbidity in Australia.

AMOSS will undertake active surveillance and epidemiological research of selected obstetric conditions. The aim is to improve the knowledge of rare obstetric disorders and their management in Australia, providing evidence-based data for; clinical guideline development, educational resources and ongoing national perinatal research.

Once established the system will be designed to facilitate research by those interested in maternal care.

How will it work?

• Active surveillance of selected conditions will be undertaken
• Maternity units across Australia will be recruited as partners to participate in the surveillance
• An individual within each maternity unit will be nominated to report on conditions
• Disorders investigated will have an estimated incidence of less than 1:1000 births per year
• Electronic monthly reporting on rare conditions will be used with a negative reporting system in place
• Incidence and case control studies conducted on rare disorders
• De-identified patient data will be collected on reported cases
• An established national clinical reference group will advise and agree upon conditions to be monitored
• Independent maternity researchers will be able to apply for new studies, once the system has been implemented

For further information or to express interest in participating please contact: Janice Biggs by email or phone 02 9382 1068

AMOSS Investigators

Associate Professor Elizabeth Sullivan, Perinatal and Reproductive Epidemiology Research Unit, School of Women’s and Children’s Health, University of New South Wales

Professor David Ellwood, Canberra Clinical School, Australian National University

Professor Michael Peek, Nepean Clinical School, University of Sydney

Dr Marian Knight, National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, University of Oxford, United Kingdom

Associate Professor Lisa Jackson Pulver, Muru Marri Indigenous Health Unit, School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of New South Wales

Professor Caroline Homer, Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Health, University of Technology, Sydney

Ms Joanna Holt, Women’s Hospital Australasia

Dr Yvonne Zurynski, Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney

Dr Claire McLintock, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Auckland, New Zealand

Associate Professor Tessa Ho, Office of Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sydney

Dr Nolan McDonnell, Department of Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine, King Edward Memorial Hospital for Women, Western Australia

Professor Elizabeth Elliott, Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit; The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney

Ms Janice Biggs, Perinatal and Reproductive Epidemiology Research Unit, School of Women’s and Children’s Health, University of New South Wales