One tragedy, two miracles
Pregnant nurse, 28, dies of virus – but her baby is saved
A heAvily pregnant nurse who ‘devoted her life to the NhS’ has died after contracting coronavirus – but incredibly her baby was saved.
Mary Agyeiwaa Agyapong, 28, had deteriorated after testing positive for Covid-19.
But desperate to save her daughter, she underwent an emergency caesarean. Mrs Agyapong died days later on easter Sunday.
The tragedy comes after it emerged that more than 40 NhS staff have been killed by the virus and amid growing outrage over the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPe) and testing for frontline workers.
Damning questions were being asked last night over why Mrs Agyapong had been working at the luton and Dunstable hospital when she was well into the final three months of her pregnancy.
The hospital, where she nursed for five years, confirmed she had been working on ward 12 – which has since become a Covid-19 ward – until March 12 at least and possibly later.
Sources at the hospital said there had also been regular shortages of gowns and widespread rationing of masks, including at the time when the mother-to-be was working.
One told Channel 4 News that the shortages in PPe had to led to widespread discontent among staff who feared they may have been were left exposed. But the hospital says it did not have any significant shortages and that it followed government guidelines for pregnant staff, with Mrs Agyapong not treating coronavirus patients.
Organisations supporting pregnant healthcare workers across the UK have said hundreds were told they must work – sometimes without PPe – even though they feared for the lives of their unborn children.
Joeli Brearley, founder of campaign group Pregnant Then Screwed, said: ‘The death of Mary Agyeiwaa Agyapong could have been prevented. A child will now grow up without her mother – this tragedy could have been prevented.’
Campaign groups have written to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists urging it to change its guidance. This currently says women who are less than 28 weeks pregnant can continue in non-Covid patientfacing roles if necessary.
An internal email to staff at the hospital, explained the decision to perform an emergency caesarean was taken after Mrs Agyapong’s condition deteriorated.
Mrs Agyapong tested positive for Covid-19 and was admitted to hospital on April 7 and had the emergency caesarean within days. Doctors initially thought the nurse was showing signs of improving afterwards but her symptoms got worse again and she died on Sunday.
The NhS Trust’s chief executive, David Carter, said the survival of her baby daughter was a ‘beacon of light at this very dark time’.
The baby girl – who has been named Mary after her mother – and her father AJ have been tested and are believed to be self-isolating. Mr Carter said: ‘Mary was a fantastic nurse and a great example of what we stand for in this Trust.’
News of the tragedy came on another grim day for the NhS as it has emerged that several more healthworkers have died after contracting coronavirus.
On Monday, Dr Peter Tun, 62, who was described as a ‘superhero’ doctor, died at the Royal Berkshire hospital in Reading, where he worked as associate specialist in neuro-rehabilitation.
Father-of-three Ade Raymond, a healthcare assistant at Barnet, enfield and haringey Mental health Trust, and housekeeper Cheryl Williams, who worked at North Middlesex hospital, both in london, have also died.
The husband of nurse Amor Padilla Gatinao, 50, who died on Friday, accused the Government of ‘neglecting’ NhS workers like his wife by failing to protect them. Mario Gatinao said he believes his wife caught the virus while working at St Charles hospital in west london.
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‘This could have been prevented’