PREGNANCY
Giving Birth
DURING A PANDEMIC Covid-19 virus infection and pregnancy. Update supplied by NHS - Press Office
BIRTH PARTNERS We are currently only allowing one birth partner to limit the spread of Covid-19.
SUSPENSION OF HOMEBIRTH SERVICES Due to the current concerns regarding Covid-19 and the impact on the NHS workforce, we will be temporarily suspending our homebirth services. This will enable us to provide safe care to all women having a baby under our care. All women booked with our homebirth team will be informed of these changes with a plan to give birth in our Midwifery-Led Unit under the care of the Homebirth Team Midwives. We will also not be providing waterbirth during this time. We ask for your co-operation in supporting this and apologise for the inconvenience. We hope that we will be able to resume normal services once this critical period is over. For women who choose not to attend the Maternity Unit when in labour i.e. giving birth at home, we will not be able to guarantee the availability of a midwife to attend you. This decision will be at your discretion and risk, but we would encourage you to contact maternity triage for further advice when you are in labour.
WHAT EFFECT DOES CORONAVIRUS HAVE ON PREGNANT WOMEN? Pregnant women do not appear to be more susceptible to the consequences of coronavirus than the general population. As this is a new
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virus, how it may affect you is not yet clear. It is expected the large majority of pregnant women will experience only mild or moderate cold/flu like symptoms. More severe symptoms such as pneumonia appear to be more common in older people, those with weakened immune systems or long-term conditions. There are no reported deaths of pregnant women from coronavirus at the moment. If you are pregnant you are more vulnerable to getting infections than a woman who is not pregnant. If you have an underlying heart or lung c ondition, such as asthma, you may be more unwell if you have coronavirus.
WHAT EFFECT WILL CORONAVIRUS HAVE ON MY BABY IF I AM DIAGNOSED WITH THE INFECTION? As this is a very new virus we are just beginning to learn about it. There is no evidence to suggest an increased risk of miscarriage. With regard to vertical transmission (transmission from mother to baby) the evidence now suggest that transmission is probable, although there has only been a single case reported. The significance to the neonate is not yet known and we will continue to assess and monitor the situation for women and babies. Some babies born to women with symptoms of coronavirus in China have been born prematurely. It is unclear whether coronavirus caused this or the doctors made the decision for the baby to be born early because the woman was unwell. As we learn about the risk of pre-term birth and coronavirus infection, we will update this information.
