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Home Midwives College roles and services Locum services

Locum services

NZCOM-48

Rural service

Locum services support the sustainability of LMC practice by providing funded relief to allow for time off or cover during unanticipated emergencies.

LMC midwives who have a caseload of 20 rural or remote-rural women per annum, making up at least 50% of the total caseload, can access 9 days funded locum cover through the Rural Midwifery Recruitment and Retention Service (RMRRS).  In addition to the 9 days annual leave, the RMRRS provides an emergency service allowing up to 5 days emergency locum cover for illness, bereavement or in special circumstances.

Register for locum cover or apply to become a rural locum

Further information

For information regarding cover for COVID-19 please click here

For more information about either locum service please call 0800 MIDWIFE

Urban service

The College has negotiated a short term contract with the Ministry of Health to fund up to 5 days emergency locum cover for urban LMC midwives. This contract has a limited amount of funds allocated to it. Locum requests will be filled on a first come first served basis until the available funds are spent.

The College is hopeful that through the co-design process a permanent locum service will be available for all midwives in the future.

Applying for emergency urban locum cover

LMC midwives are now eligible to apply for up to 5 days emergency locum cover if they meet the following criteria:

  • Have a minimum caseload of 30 women in total over the current 12 month period.
  • Experience illness, accident, bereavement, family issue, stress which means they are unexpectedly unable to work.
  • Are either self-employed claiming under Section 94, or employed to provide LMC care by a PHO, trust or other organisation.

Midwives who are employed by DHBs to provide caseloading midwifery care are not eligible to apply for this locum cover.

NB: Case by case exceptions may be made for applications which do not meet the criteria. Please phone 03 377 2485 ext 5 to discuss, or email urbanlocum@mmpo.org.nz

APPLY FOR EMERGENCY URBAN LOCUM COVER

LMC midwives who are eligible to apply for rural locum cover should apply for emergency cover under the rural locum service

As emergency urban locum cover is a newly established service, it is helpful (but not absolutely necessary) if midwives applying for cover can identify a midwife who is willing to provide the emergency cover. Midwives need to meet the criteria set out below in order to be eligible to become an emergency urban locum.

Applying to be an emergency urban locum

Midwives who wish to provide emergency urban locum cover need to:

  • Have at least 3 years’ practice experience as a midwife and at least one year of these working as an LMC
  • Have no conditions on her APC and no outstanding complaints
  • Be confident in providing care in the setting of practice that she is relieving i.e primary maternity settings (home and primary units), secondary maternity settings etc.
  • Already have or be able to quickly get an Access Agreement(s) in the facility (facilities) for the midwife she will be covering.

APPLY TO BECOME AN EMERGENCY URBAN LOCUM

For any queries regarding this service, please phone 03 377 2485 ext 5 to discuss, or email urbanlocum@mmpo.org.nz

NZCOM-21