BABY JOY AMID LOCKDOWN
COUPLE HOLLY MURPHY DOLAN AND CIAN O’GORMAN WELCOME BABY OSCAR INTO THE WORLD
A WICKLOW town mother of a newborn baby has described how different her delivery was compared to the birth of her 20-month old daughter because of the Covid-19 restrictions currently in place.
Healthy baby Oscar was born at Portlaoise Hospital on Tuesday to Holly Murphy Dolan and her partner Cian O’Gorman. Cian wasn’t allowed be present for the birth and couldn’t access the hospital. Instead the fatherto-be had to wait anxiously outside in his car while Holly gave birth.
It was a far cry for the pair from the circumstances involving their daughter Mia’s birth in 2018.
‘It was all a bit weird,’ recalls Holly. ‘Restrictions were in place so my partner had to wait outside in his car in the car park. He wasn’t allowed anywhere near the assessment room or anywhere near me when I was giving birth. He was allowed in for ten minutes after Oscar was born. When we had our other child my partner Cian stayed most of the night. It was all very different this time.’
The maternity ward also proved a totally different experience compared to Mia May’s birth, when the ward was full of thrilled mothers, their newborn bundle of joys, and excited family members and friends.
This time Holly and Oscar were greeted by a near-empty ward.
‘It was a strange experience being brought up to the ward. Normally it is packed full of other women, their babies and family members. This time there were only five women in the ward. It was almost empty. You weren’t allowed any
visitors. Everyone was behind curtains and it was a totally different experience. Usually mothers are swapping stories and sharing the experience. This time it was quite lonely but on the other hand you did feel very well protected,’ says Holly.
Cian also wasn’t permitted to enter the hospital when baby Oscar was due to be brought home.
‘ They are quite keen to get you out of hospital if you are healthy,’ explains Holly.
‘Usually they give you around two days to settle into things. Normally when you are leaving it’s a nice time for your partner as they bring up the car seat and place the baby in it for the first time but that wasn’t allowed either. When it was time to go home Cian had to wait down by reception for a phone call. Once he received the call, he had to drop the baby’s car seat off at the bottom of the reception so a health carer could collect it and place the baby in.’
The couple returned to Portlaoise for Oscar’s neonatal heel prick and were greeted by a near-empty hospital.
‘ That felt really bizarre. The car park was completely unoccupied at Portlaoise Hospital and the building was empty as well. It was all pretty surreal.’
While Holly acknowledges that the outbreak of Covid-19 just when she was due to give birth unsettled her, she was extremely grateful for the kindness and understanding shown to her by all the nurses and doctors.
‘I was nervous to begin with but I thought it will all soon blow over and that calmed me down. Then things started getting worse and more regulations came in. I have to say the nurses and doctors made me feel so comfortable. They were brilliant and really went that extra mile to put my mind at ease,’ she said.
‘ This is all new to them as well and they handled it very well. They were working extra shifts and helping one another out in any way they could. There was one woman who used to be a cleaner in the hospital but had retired. She came back to help. You could see everyone is doing above and beyond their best under very difficult circumstances.’
While Holly and Cian live in Tullamore, Holly has returned to her mother Philippa’s house in Wicklow town with Oscar while the country remains in lockdown. B
oth parents are extremely keen to introduce Oscar to the rest of their family once restrictions have been lifted.
‘My Mum is the only member of my family to have met Oscar. None of Cian’s family have met him yet. Mia is delighted with the idea of a baby brother and is getting used to the fact there will be another baby in the house. My mum loves having me and Oscar here.’
MY PARTNER HAD TO WAIT OUTSIDE IN HIS CAR IN THE CAR PARK... HE WASN’T ALLOWED ANYWHERE NEAR ME WHEN I WAS GIVING BIRTH