Caesarean Rates & Birth Statistics by Hospital (NSW)
Comparing the six maternity hospitals where I most commonly support families in Wollongong, Illawarra & Southern Sydney.
Comparing:
How to Use This Guide
Photo by Sylvia Liber
Choosing where to have your baby is one of the biggest decisions you'll make during pregnancy.
Every maternity hospital has its own strengths, its own culture and its own approach to birth. Birth statistics provide valuable insight into how maternity care differs between hospitals. They can help you understand how often different birth outcomes occur, offer insight into the policy patterns within a maternity service, ask informed questions, and choose a maternity service that feels like the right fit for you.
This guide brings together the latest publicly available birth outcomes for the six maternity hospitals where I most commonly support families: Wollongong Public, Wollongong Private, Shoalhaven, Bowral, Sutherland and the Royal Hospital for Women.
The goal isn't to tell you which hospital is "best", but to help you find the maternity service that's the best fit for your pregnancy, your preferences and your birth goals. The hope is that it helps you feel more confident and informed as you make this important decision.
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| Hospital | Births | Spontaneous Vaginal | Vacuum | Forceps | Planned CS | Emergency CS | Epidural | VBAC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wollongong Public | 2,424 | 51.3% | 5.2% | — | 21.8% | 18.4% | 63.4% | 16.2% |
| Wollongong Private | 804 | 37.4% | 8.5% | — | 41.8% | 11.7% | 87.7% | 5.2% |
| Shoalhaven | 780 | 57.7% | 5.4% | 2.9% | 20.9% | 12.4% | 53.8% | 12.4% |
| Bowral | 516 | 64.5% | 7.9% | — | 14.5% | 10.3% | 45.0% | 23.1% |
| Sutherland | 1,151 | 57.0% | 6.7% | — | 18.9% | 12.3% | 60.9% | 8.1% |
| Royal Hospital for Women | 3,175 | 46.4% | 7.5% | 7.7% | 21.0% | 16.2% | 64.8% | 20.3% |
— Data not published by NSW Health due to small numbers.
How to Interpret These Statistics
No single number can tell you whether one hospital is "better" than another. Instead, look for patterns across multiple measures and consider how well a hospital's strengths align with your own pregnancy, preferences and birth goals.
If you're healthy and hoping for spontaneous labour and a physiological birth, you may place greater importance on outcomes such as spontaneous vaginal birth, planned caesarean and instrumental birth rates. These figures can provide insight into the type of care women commonly receive and may help you identify questions to ask before deciding where to give birth.
If you have a more complex pregnancy, however, a hospital with higher intervention rates may also have access to specialist expertise and facilities that aren't available elsewhere. Tertiary referral hospitals such as The Royal Hospital for Women is unusual in that it combines a strong reputation for supporting physiological birth with a statewide role caring for many of the most complex pregnancies in NSW. They also have expertise in areas such as vaginal breech birth and twin vaginal birth.
The goal isn't simply to choose the hospital with the lowest intervention rates. It's to choose the hospital whose expertise, philosophy of care and usual practices are the best fit for you.
At a Glance
Different hospitals have different strengths.
Planning a physiological birth? Look beyond the caesarean rate. Compare spontaneous vaginal birth, planned caesarean, emergency caesarean and instrumental birth rates together.
Considering a private hospital? Great option for a planned cesarean or if facilities such as a private room and continuity with your obstetrician are more important considerations to you than reducing interventions during labour.
Have a complex pregnancy? Hospitals with higher intervention rates may also provide access to specialist expertise and facilities that aren't available elsewhere.
Comparing tertiary referral hospitals? Remember that they are often — but not always — specialised centres offering the highest level of evidence-based care. They also care for a much higher proportion of women with complex pregnancies, which naturally influences their birth statistics towards a picture of higher intervention without being able to dig down.
Not sure what the numbers mean? Use them as a starting point for conversations with your midwife, obstetrician or doula.
How to Choose a Maternity Hospital
Look Beyond Numbers
No single statistic tells the whole story. Compare several birth outcomes together to build a clearer picture of how care differs between hospitals.
Match Your Birth Goals
If you're hoping for spontaneous labour and a physiological birth, look for a hospital whose usual practices and birth outcomes align with those priorities.
Private hospitals are generally not designed to support physiological birth and tend to have higher rates of intervention.
Don’t Just Go Local
You don’t have to choose the closest hospital. Exploring options outside your local area may help you find a maternity service that better aligns with your preferences and birth goals.
Ask Smarter Questions
Use these birth statistics as a starting point for conversations with your midwife, obstetrician or doula so you can make an informed decision about where to give birth.