Mums-to-be can have partner by their side throughout pregnancy
Expectant mothers can now have someone by their side at all stages of their pregnancy under a revision to COVID guidelines from the NHS.
The change means that mums-to-be can have someone with them when they attend appointments, provided the support partner doesn’t have symptoms of coronavirus.
Previous guidance placed the responsibility on individual health authorities for drawing up rules on whether a partner could be present or not. The strict regulations meant that many women have been left to give birth alone since the beginning of the pandemic.
In the light of the new guidance, trusts have been requested to review their rules.
The guidance states: “Pregnant women value the support from a partner, relative, friend or other person through pregnancy and childbirth as it facilitates emotional wellbeing and is a key component of safe and personalised maternity care.
“It is our aim, further to a risk assessment, that a woman should have access to support from a person of her choosing at all stages of her maternity journey and that all trusts should facilitate this as quickly as possible.
“Health bosses have been asked to undertake a risk assessment in each part of their maternity service with the aim of identifying if there is an “elevated risk of COVID-19 transmission if support people are present”.
Trusts have been told to address issues highlighted in the risk assessment, such as making changes to the configuration of space, as well as other infection prevention and control measures, including training and personal protective equipment.
An NHS spokesperson said: “The NHS understands how important it is for pregnant women to have someone by their side at this special time in their lives, which is why extra infection control measures have been put in place and hospitals are rearranging clinics to give more space.”
Dr Edward Morris, president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said: “We hope the rollout of rapid testing will increase the time partners who test negative can spend with women and their babies on antenatal and postnatal wards.
“With increasing prevalence of the virus in many areas, decisions about visiting and access for partners and families will need to be based on local information and testing capacity.”