Tough maternity restrictions 'protect' pregnant women, says Rotunda Master
If unrestricted visiting was in place, as many as 24 adults could be in one room, Prof Fergal Malone, Master of the Rotunda, said. File Photo. Mark Stedman/RollingNews.ie
Safely lifting visiting restrictions in maternity hospitals is not easy, the master at the Rotunda Hospital has said.
Professor Fergal Malone said while restrictions are “terrible” they protect pregnant women.
There is a renewed focus on visiting restrictions this week as HSE officials are writing to maternity hospitals seeking greater transparency. The HSE has advised partners can be present for anomaly scans, during labour and visit infants in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) but each hospital decides when this is safe.
HSE chief Paul Reid has said the "conditions are right" for restrictions to be lifted.
At the Rotunda, partners can attend anomaly scans, but not earlier scans.
Prof Malone said women are often worried their partner cannot attend the full labour. Some hospitals now only allow partners during active labour and birth.
He said: “As a general rule this is not true here. When the patient is in a single occupancy room there is no limit, no arbitrary centimetre dilation before the partner can be there.”
However, he said on occasion women started labour in multi-bed wards, and then visiting is restricted.
Limits continue on post-natal visits as most wards are Florence Nightingale-style with up to 12 beds.
He said: “If you have unrestricted visiting, you now have possibly 20 to 24 adults in that room. You would have to think carefully about that, especially in the context of this B.117, which we know is much more transmissible.”
The building was constructed in 1757, which places constraints on physical spacing.
He said their “overarching concern” is safety so post-natal visiting happens at otherwise quiet times.
“It’s not just about the wards, you are looking at the corridors and the general footfall. If this goes well, we will further develop the hours,” he said.
Prof Malone said they do not offer PCR tests to partners as the two adults are usually in a bubble together and the partner is not a hospital patient.
He does not agree with calls to use antigen testing as they are not as reliable.
He said: “The science shows they are potentially useful if done frequently at large volumes. A single test would not give you confidence, it would not be a good option.”
He said many women do not feel comfortable on busy wards in the current climate, too. Staff are vaccinated but the women are not, he said.
“The prime reason restrictions are in place is to protect women,” he said.
“Many pregnant women have been cocooning … the last thing they want to do is come into a room where they don’t feel confident and safe.”
The risk of Covid Placentitis - recently linked to still-births in Ireland - is a worry, he said.
“It is a real issue, it is something women are concerned about. That’s another reason we have to be careful not to drop the ball,” he said.
Pregnant women are now prioritised for vaccination due to these risks. He expects this programme to start “in the next week or so”. He estimates they are currently treating about 5,000 women in the 14 - 36 weeks gestation block that is recommended for vaccination. Each woman can request a conversation with their midwife or obstetrican about the vaccine before getting the shot.
The HSE said on Thursday they expect vaccinations for pregnant women to take place in mass vaccinations centres.
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