VCA - Vicki Culling Associates

education and training, online learning and consultation
on all aspects of perinatal and infant loss
in Aotearoa New Zealand 

Perinatal & Infant Loss Training
There are a number of ways you can learn through VCA - webinars, in-person workshops and online modules. If you'd like to talk about a specialised or tailored programme for your staff, please get in touch.
If you are looking for information about the 2024 Professionals' Series - click here

Online Learning
VCA offers online learning for students (midwifery, nursing, psychology, counselling, sonography and medical students) in conjunction with Sands NZ.
If you are looking for information about the 2024 Student Series - click here

Consultancy & Advocacy -
If you are a government agency or organisation looking for expert knowledge on how to better support parents, families and whānau following the loss of a baby or infant; or you are a bereaved parent looking for information or support in navigating our official systems following the loss of a precious baby, please get in touch - click here

postmortem video for bereaved parents

During a session at the 2017 Sands National Conference in Tauranga, Brigitte Kampire-Ottaway, a midwife from Northland, made a comment about creating an accessible resource for bereaved parents who are considering a postmortem for their baby. The comment resonated with me, and I got to work with Lisa Paraku to create this video.

Lisa is a bereaved parent, the current lay representative on the Perinatal and Maternal Mortality Review Committee (PMMRC) and equally passionate about providing information and resources for parents and whanau following the death of a baby.

The video has been made to complement the written information in the PMMRC pamphlet. When parents are asked to consider a postmortem, we’re expecting their midwife or doctor will tell them about this resource and direct them to it. As we say in the video, we are not trying to convince parents to have a postmortem, nor dissuade them. We also continually tell parents to ask their midwife or doctor for further information, as we’re aware that a video of eleven minutes will not provide all they want to know.

We’re aware that not all parents will have a smart phone and be able to search for the video, and we’re working on a solution for that. We’re also planning more videos to pass on valuable information to bereaved parents at a time when taking information on board is challenging yet so very important.

Please share the link freely.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2jijqJs0K0

Here is the link to the Healthpoint website page for the National Perinatal Pathology Service