Dr WEBSTER (Mallee) (13:43): September is NICU awareness month. 'NICU' stands for 'neonatal intensive care unit'. They are specialised units that care for babies born prematurely. One in 10 babies in Australia are born prematurely, or before 37 weeks gestation. Of these, 73 per cent require NICU services. Many families in Mallee have experienced the stress and joy of bringing a premmie into the world. Thirty-five years ago, my husband and I brought a premmie into the world and valued the support we received from the Royal Women's Hospital in Melbourne. For regional families, distance adds complexity to an already stressful space, and the understanding of NICU professionals makes a big difference in their own ability to adjust to a tiny baby in need of intensive care. The families I have spoken to within Mallee who have needed neonatal intensive care tell me of the support, care and hope they have received in these incredible places. Just yesterday I was talking to a local mum who has needed the care of a NICU twice, with both of her daughters being born before 30 weeks. When she and her husband recount their journey with both girls, they speak of their time in a NICU as something special rather than something that is overwhelming. They said to me that one of the greatest gifts you can give families of critically ill infants is hope: 'Hope in the darkest of hours helped us to endure.'