Mums-to-be offered maternity support during Covid-19 pandemic

Pregnant women in Salford worried about the impact of Covid-19 can access support and information from Greater Manchester maternity services.

Midwives stress that it is vital that prenatal appointments are kept and that the assigned midwife or maternity staff are contacted if there are any issues.

Eileen Stringer, the clinical lead midwife for Greater Manchester and eastern Cheshire, says the “same level of care and safety” will be provided.

Stringer states, “Your partner is very welcome to stay with you, obviously if they are ill or have signs of coronavirus infection then it might be a good idea you have a backup birth partner.

“We can help you with feeding, how to change the baby etc, we’ve got lots of good reliable advice that you can use to takeaway with you.”

All clinics and hospitals are adhering to the national guideline on social distancing while waiting. Additionally, personal protective equipment (PPE) will be worn by staff while attending scans.

Some treatments require the health professional to be closer than 2 metres. However, as recommended by Public Health England, safety devices and infection prevention precautions will be in effect.

Mum-to-be Manjoht Kaur, 23, found the experience of pregnancy during the pandemic rather daunting, which left her feeling helpless and anxious.  

She said, “At the time, the death and infection rates were increasing rapidly every day. The numbers were constantly on the front page, so my anxiety would spiral out of control.”

Kaur was glad to have found the mybirthchoice website. She added, “They do a fantastic job at answering all questions that pregnant women would have during the pandemic. It’s very reassuring and if I had read it earlier wouldn’t have felt so unprepared.”

Click here for more information on pregnancy during Covid-19.