Newborn Care

From before your baby arrives through the first months at home, Nest provides one continuous pathway of neonatologist-led newborn care – the expertise of newborn intensive care specialists, delivered with the warmth of family. It begins with a no-cost antenatal consult and close communication with your obstetrician at Grace Private, followed by specialist care in hospital at Mater Mothers’ Private Gold Coast. We help you transition to life at home with structured, unhurried follow-up as well as close support whenever you need us.

Whether you're welcoming your baby in hospital, finding your feet at home, or navigating an early concern, we're with you at every step.

A female patient lying in a hospital bed, smiling and looking at a male healthcare professional who is attending to her, in a medical setting.

Close-up of a newborn baby in a hospital bassinet, wearing a striped hospital hat, with a caregiver holding the baby's tiny hand. The caregiver is wearing blue gloves and has a tattooed arm.

Three healthcare professionals in scrubs standing in a hospital corridor, each holding a newborn baby. The background shows a sign for 'Special Care Nursery' and hospital doors.

Close-up of a newborn baby with a hand gently touching the baby's chest, in a hospital setting with medical equipment nearby.

A premature baby in a hospital incubator with medical devices attached, holding an adult's finger.

A smiling male healthcare professional holding a baby wrapped in a colorful striped blanket inside a hospital or clinic.

A newborn baby in an incubator with two healthcare professionals, a male doctor in blue scrubs and a female nurse in pink cap and face mask, in a hospital neonatal unit.

A healthcare professional with short dark hair and a beard, wearing scrubs, is looking down and examining a newborn baby inside a clear incubator. The baby has medical tubes and wires attached and is lying on a blanket decorated with colorful shapes,

Medical team performing surgery in an operating room. Two doctors and a nurse are focused on the patient lying on the operating table, surrounded by medical equipment.

A healthcare worker checks a baby lying on a hospital bed. The baby is looking up at the caregiver, who is leaning over and using a stethoscope to listen to the baby's chest. The bed has a colorful, striped blanket.

A woman lies on a hospital bed, surrounded by medical staff, in a hospital room.

What makes Nest different

We've built Nest to bring the expertise and family-centred focus of a tertiary hospital's newborn service into private maternity – without making families choose between them. These things set our care apart:

We're with you from before birth. Our care doesn’t start after delivery. We meet you in a no-cost antenatal consult and stay in close contact with Mater Mothers and Grace Private – so by the time your baby arrives, you already know our team and feel supported.

NICU expertise for every baby. Our neonatologists have advanced training in newborn intensive care – expertise usually found only in public NICUs. We can safely care for smaller, earlier and more complex babies, so if your baby needs extra support, they’re already in expert hands.

Family-centred care from the start. Nest is owned and run by our family, and that shapes all of our care. We protect bonding from your baby’s first moments – including skin-to-skin at caesareans, and keeping you close if your baby needs nursery care. We look after your family the way we'd want our own looked after.

Close by when you need us. Mater Mothers’ Private Gold Coast is the only hospital where we care for babies – a deliberate choice, so we can be fully present for every family. Our clinic suites are right next door at RDX Lumina, so we’re never far away if any concerns arise.

Your baby’s care journey

Nest cares for babies born at Mater Mothers' Private Gold Coast. It's the only hospital we work at, by choice – so our team is on site, close by, and genuinely there for your family throughout your stay.

Meaningful support should begin before your baby arrives – which is why we offer something unusual: a no-cost antenatal video consult, a chance to meet our team ahead of time and talk through your baby's care. By the time your baby is born, Nest is already familiar. You'll have met us, asked your questions, and know exactly how your baby's care will work – rather than meeting your baby's specialist team for the first time at the birth.
Third Trimester Video Consult (30 min, at no cost)
A chance to meet us, get ahead of any worries, and feel prepared. We typically cover:
- Introducing our team and how Nest works
- Your pregnancy so far, and any concerns or complications
- Planning ahead for care during and after delivery
- What to expect in the first hours and days after birth
- Your preferences and early parenting questions
- Our approach to bonding, skin-to-skin and the first feeds
- Our hospital care pathway and follow-up schedule
If complications arise, we'll adjust the timing or add consults to support you at every step. Our consults are bulk-billed, or if you don’t have Medicare, at no cost.
Nest provides direct, specialist care for babies born at Mater Mothers’ Private Gold Coast, in close collaboration with the maternity team. From the moment your baby arrives, we support bonding, skin-to-skin contact and breastfeeding – minimising separation, and trusting your family to lead the way.
Led by a neonatologist with subspecialty training in newborn intensive care, we bring NICU-level expertise to the bedside of every baby. That means we can safely care for a wider range of newborns – including smaller, more complex, or unexpectedly unwell babies who might otherwise be transferred elsewhere. More of those babies stay where they belong: with you. We know when to step in, and when to step back – caring for your baby in hospital and following through with seamless continuity as your family moves from hospital to home.
Initial Review (Day 0–1) We attend your baby's birth if needed, or review them shortly after delivery. Even in well babies, this early review offers reassurance and helps detect issues before they escalate.
- A full newborn examination
- Monitoring early adaptation (breathing, tone, colour, reflexes)
- Identifying concerns like temperature instability or poor feeding
- Supporting bonding, skin-to-skin and the first feeds
- Answering early parental questions
- Creating a personalised care plan
Progress Review (Day 1–3) We work closely with the midwifery team to coordinate care and answer your questions in an unhurried way. We review your baby's:
- Feeding, hydration and weight gain
- Jaundice, urine/stool output and settling
- Any new or evolving concerns
Discharge Review (Day 3–5) We aim to leave you feeling prepared and confident to take your baby home. Before discharge we complete a second detailed examination to:
- Confirm weight gain and feeding establishment
- Address any unresolved concerns
- Explain what's normal – and what's not – in the early weeks
- Plan follow-up care and ensure you know how to reach us
Throughout your stay we remain available – for jaundice, vomiting, unsettled behaviour, or simply a sense that something's not right. We don't round once and disappear to a clinic for the rest of the day. Instead, we roster ourselves so a specialist is always reachable during your stay – for a longer review, an extra question, or simple reassurance. Midwives contact us directly when needed, and we stay in daily communication with the team. Even outside scheduled visits, your baby is under expert oversight.
The early weeks can be beautiful and challenging. Our follow-up care supports you well beyond discharge – structured reviews, 45-minute appointments, and a calm space to ask questions early, before small concerns escalate. We consult from our own dedicated, family-designed space at RDX Lumina next door to Mater Private Hospital Gold Coast.
Postnatal Phone Review (20 min, fully bulk-billed) A scheduled check-in a few weeks after discharge with one of our Neonatologists or Neonatal Nurse Practitioner, often aligning with the "three-week dip" – when questions, fatigue or feeding concerns commonly arise. We typically cover feeding, sleep and settling; early growth and weight gain; tailored tips and reassurance; and planning for any extra support.
6-Week Clinic Review (45 min, generally with a Neonatologist) Your first in-person review – an extended session that goes far beyond a standard check-up: a full physical and developmental assessment, a review of feeding, growth, digestion and sleep, attention to parental wellbeing, and personalised guidance.
4-Month Clinic Review (45 min, with a Neonatologist or Paediatrician) A milestone visit that captures a stage of rapid change – often missed if care ends at six weeks. We cover motor and social development, starting solids, sleep changes, milestone tracking and early identification of any red flags.
8-Month Clinic Review (45 min, with a Neonatologist or Paediatrician) A milestone visit at a stage when babies become mobile, social and opinionated – and when subtle concerns are easiest to address. We cover sitting, crawling and early mobility, babbling and communication, established solids and finger foods, sleep consolidation, teething and milestone tracking, with careful screening for any red flags. It also settles your family into Nest Children's, with ongoing paediatric care from here.
Between visits, you're never on your own. You can reach us directly for non-urgent questions – no fee just to ask something simple, and no layers of admin to get past. Our practice manager is a paediatric nurse, so when you call you're often speaking with someone who can talk through a clinical concern and help work out what's needed, then and there. You also have the option of extra appointments whenever you need them, plus ongoing access to Nest Notes, our evidence-based library of newborn and infant care guides.
We think knowing the cost should be the easy part. Our prices are capped and published in full, right here – the figure you see is simply what you pay, the same whether or not you're eligible for Medicare. We lodge your Medicare and private health claims for you, so there's no gap to chase, no bill you didn't expect, and no working it out for yourself.
- Antenatal Consults – free, with or without Medicare
- Hospital Care (Mater Mothers) – $700 out-of-pocket, or $140 once your family reaches the Medicare Safety Net
- Clinic Follow-Up – $275 out-of-pocket for each visit, or $55 with the Safety Net. Postnatal phone reviews are free, with or without Medicare
And we keep the same costs for every family, whether or not they have Medicare. For our bulk-billed services – antenatal consults and postnatal phone reviews – that means they're simply free for everyone: if Medicare doesn't cover you, we don't charge for them. No family should pay more, or miss out, for not yet having Medicare.
Most families who've paid a private obstetrician's fee during pregnancy are already near the Safety Net threshold, which significantly reduces what they pay us. See our full fee schedule and Medicare details here.
Nest Notes
Nest Notes is our trusted library of newborn and infant care guides – written by our team to help you feel informed and confident. Covering feeding, sleep, settling, development, common health concerns and life with a newborn, each guide offers clear, practical advice grounded in the same expertise that shapes our clinical care. It's freely available to all families – whether you're seeing us or simply looking for reliable guidance.
Nest Network
We work closely with a trusted network of allied health professionals who specialise in infant and child care. As part of your journey, we may recommend or coordinate support from lactation consultants, paediatric physiotherapists, speech therapists, infant dietitians, and tongue tie and circumcision providers – so your child's care is truly holistic.
GP Referrals – Newborns & Infants
We welcome referrals from GPs and other health professionals for newborns and young infants – including feeding and settling difficulties, reflux, jaundice, growth concerns, prematurity or complex birth history, NICU/SCN follow-up, and early developmental questions. After every review, you'll receive a clear, timely letter – and you're always welcome to contact our clinicians directly to discuss a patient.
Referrals can be sent via Medical Objects, email (hello@nestclinics.com.au), or Halaxy. For developmental, behavioural and general paediatric referrals, see the Nest Children’s page.