The Wollongong mums who made health authorities sit up and listen

Eight years ago, that's what the Wollongong women who went on to start Better Births Illawarra did, with their conversations revealing many stories of trauma.

"It was just a group of parents sitting together and, not comparing, but sharing birth stories," BBI Vice President Sharon Settecasse said.

"For those of us who walked away with birth trauma the pattern was really clear - for the ones that didn't, they were supported by a midwife they knew and trusted."

In the years since, the advocacy group has helped to advocate for change in the Illawarra birth system and have been closely involved in the NSW Parliamentary inquiry into birth trauma, which has revealed the issue to be widespread across the state, and particularly in the Illawarra.

Read more of the Mercury's coverage of the birth trauma inquiry.

This week, some of those same women - who now work around school drop-off instead of nap schedules - will travel to Macquarie Street to watch the recommendations of the inquiry be handed down.

They are expected to be tabled by the Select Committee led by Animal Justice Party MLC Emma Hurst on May 29.

Ms Settecasse said the report and recommendations represented "a once in a generation opportunity to make change".

"This means that all the 4500 women and partners and midwives who made submissions to the inquiry, and all the people who spoke at the hearings, will have all of that bundled into a set of recommendations which will then go to the NSW government and Health Minister Ryan Park to take action," she said.

"I don't think we're going to see an inquiry like this again very soon, so we're keenly awaiting the report, as are all of the women who made submissions and everyone who courageously spoke at the hearings and shared their heartwrenching stories.

"There's a sense of sadness that this is so endemic to mothers, but we're also feeling this sense of hope and determination that we're not going away."

While the recommendations remain to be seen, the group is hopeful the report will lead to more women being able to access continuous, midwife-led care during their pregnancy and birth.

"This model of care is known to reduce birth trauma, it's known to improve outcomes for mums and babies and increase midwives satisfaction at work, and it saves the government money, so we want to see that embedded in the NSW health system," Ms Settecasse said.

She said it was estimated that seven out of 10 birthing parents miss out on this type of care.

"In families and communities where mothers and babies have lifelong trauma - it deeply impacts all aspects of their lives," she said.

"We want to see the NSW government take decisive action on this and really support recommendations that are going to embed women's right to access empowered births."

Calderwood mother Lis Legge, who shared her traumatic experience during the Wollongong Hospital birth of her eldest son with the Mercury last year to encourage other women to come forward, said she was feeling hopeful ahead of the report being handed down.

Left feeling "broken, physically, and mentally" by her first birth, Ms Legge joined Better Births after the "healing birth" of her second son in 2018 under the care of the sought-after Midwifery Group Practice program, also at Wollongong.

"Having two very different experiences really lit a spark in me, and I'm optimistic that this report is going to change things for other women," she said.

"For every every woman, including myself, who gave evidence or made a submission and essentially shared their journey, the outcome of this report really has the opportunity to make a difference so that those experiences can make a difference."

Once the Select Committee's report is tabled, the NSW Government must formally respond within three months, and Ms Settecasse said her group would be closely monitoring the response.