From the Newslink DeskDiane Bishop Newslink reporter Rachael KellyOPINION: Midwife Sarah Stokes had time to post on Facebook that she was racing to a birth at Lumsden on Tuesday night. It took her 10 minutes to reach the town's maternity centre, but it took the expectant mum an hour to drive there. "If we didn't have Lumsden, this baby would have arrived road side," she said. The proposed downgrade of services at Lumsden has come as a shock to many who have used the facility. But the days of writing "Lumsden" as the place of birth on a birth certificate may be running out – and no-one wants to be writing "side of road" instead.

Source: Stuff March 14, 2018 00:12 UTC