'Mixed messaging' on maternity restrictions 'piling stress on pregnant women'

The Government and the HSE have been accused of piling "unnecessary stress" on pregnant women and their partners amid continued confusion over maternity restrictions. File picture

The Government and the HSE have been accused of piling "unnecessary stress" on pregnant women and their partners amid continued confusion over maternity restrictions.

While the HSE has issued guidelines to each of the country's 19 maternity units, hospitals still have the final say over the level of access fathers and birth partners are given.

The HSE has also confirmed there are currently no plans to allow birth partners attend routine antenatal appointments.

The head of the National Women and Infants Health Programme (NWIHP), Mary-Jo Biggs, hopes updated guidelines issues to hospitals last week will be rolled out on a "phased" basis.

"If these guidance protocols cannot be met, the hospital should maintain and update their risk register and review them regularly. Where there are site-specific restrictions, these should be communicated to patients," she said in a letter sent to a number of TDs.

'Mixed messages'

Opposition parties have hit out at what has been described as "mixed messages" coming from Health Minister Stephen Donnelly and the HSE on the issue.

Labour TD Seán Sherlock said: "There's a big disparity between what Government is saying and what the reality is, in respect of partners being able to attend appointments. 

We need clarity and the confusion and delay on this is just piling unnecessary stress on people."

Social Democrats co-leader Catherine Murphy said the HSE's letter to her is different from what Mr Donnelly has publicly stated.

"We are getting mixed messages, we're being told by the minister that it's all sorted, that it's going to be uniform approach, now I've been told that it's a local approach.

"That isn't acceptable, it's a postcode lottery in terms of how partners are treated, and the support that women in fairly tough situations have," said Ms Murphy.

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This was echoed by Green Party senator Pauline Reilly, who said she doesn't understand why the same guidelines cannot be implemented across a public service that the State is paying for.

There is no difference between a woman, a baby and a partner in the west of Ireland and a mother, a baby and a partner in Dublin."

Ms Biggs said hospitals have been asked to facilitate partners with a minimum 30-minute visit daily. Partners should also be allowed attend throughout labour and childbirth as well as the anomaly scan, or any other visit that may involve "communication of particular emotional significance".

Revised guidelines

The guidelines were revised on June 23 to cover the attendance of partners at early pregnancy assessment units. The HSE has also advised that partners of women considered to have a higher risk pregnancy should be allowed attend routine visits as well as for all emergency presentations in late gestation.

"It is expected that this revised guidance will be introduced on a phased basis of implementation at local level. HSE Acute Operations and the NWIHP will continue to engage with the six hospital groups regarding the compliance to the revised guidance across the 19 maternity services," she said.

Ms Biggs added that the primary area not addressed in the guidance relates to routine antenatal appointments.

"Further planning will be required to develop guidance that can support partners to attend at routine antenatal appointments. This will be examined once the guidance for unplanned attendance is implemented."