Jewish General’s ban on partners must be maintained, Legault says
Premier François Legault is standing firm in his support for the Jewish General Hospital’s decision not to allow spouses or other persons to attend births, despite widespread opposition.
“At the Jewish General Hospital, there are a lot of COVID -19 cases, so there are good reasons for making this rule,” Legault said Monday.
The government has no intention of extending the ban on spouses in birthing rooms to other hospitals, he said. It might be possible for women intending to give birth at the Jewish to change hospitals, he added.
But as a petition opposing the measure topped 88,000 signatures Monday afternoon, expectant mothers expressed dismay at having to choose between giving birth alone or going to a different hospital.
“It’s a really tough choice, because obviously I love my doctor and I love the facility at the Jewish and I love all the staff,” said Corinne Balaila of Dollard-desormeaux.
She is expecting her second child in July and had been planning to give birth at the Jewish. Now she is considering switching hospitals so her husband can attend.
“For the safety of my child, I would want my husband to be there, so I would probably have to make that call and decide to go somewhere else,” she said.
Balaila’s husband, Kevin Engels, said the stress of leaving his wife to give birth alone was “impossible.”
Her first delivery was difficult and his support was crucial — especially afterward, when Balaila was too weak to hold the baby, the couple said.
“We’re reasonable people and we can understand the challenges that the hospital faces,” Engels said.
“But from the heart, it’s just like, ‘How do you knowingly let your partner go through something like that alone when you know that you can full well support them?’ ” he said.
Dr. Louise Miner, director of professional services and a 30-year obstetrician-gynecologist at the Jewish General, said the hospital had no choice but to take the measure last Friday to protect patients and staff.
It had tried to screen spouses for COVID-19, but some people did not disclose they had the virus, she said.
“Our hospital serves communities in this territory and outside this territory who have the highest infection rate,” she said.
“Unfortunately, people bypass (the screening) and just lie, and it’s only once people have been exposed that we realize that a person is symptomatic,” she said.
“This has happened more than once, and safety is the No. 1 concern now,” Miner said.
Some husbands ignored instructions to stay in their wives’ room, she added. “They blow their nose, they cough and they touch everything and contaminate everything.”
On Friday, six mothers giving birth at the hospital presented symptoms of COVID -19, she said. All were tested and at least two cases were confirmed, she said.
“It was a tipping point for us to say, how can we keep our people safe?” she said. “I know women are very distressed. My own patients are distressed.”
She said hospital staff will do everything possible to support mothers in the absence of spouses or midwives, and that patients are encouraged to bring electronic devices to share the moment with loved ones at home.