Maternity Services

If you develop COVID during your pregnancy please notify your midwife as additional care planning may be required.

 

Please be assured that we will continue to support partners attending scans and births during this time.

 

To do this, Maternity and Gynaecology services have created space within their ward areas to accommodate both Covid negative women (those with no symptoms or from asymptomatic households/contact) and Covid positive or women suspected of having Covid (those with symptoms, from symptomatic households or who have had confirmation by swab).

 

Women will be signposted to the appropriate area on the ward upon admission or during their stay in the Rockingham Wing. 

 

We will continue to screen all persons entering the ward area for symptoms of Covid, including temperature checking.

 

It is vitally important that our maternity and gynaecology services are notified if a woman or her birth partner have any Covid related symptoms prior to admission. We respectfully ask that this is done in all cases to protect other patients and staff. Regrettably for reasons of safety any partners from symptomatic households will not be able to attend and should self-isolate as directed by Government instructions.

 

If you are COVID positive during your stay you will be asked to wear a face mask other than when in active labour. Staff looking after you will also be wearing masks and other protective clothing.

As a consequence of the current Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic we have needed to implement some changes to the way we are working, and how we provide your care to you, in order to keep you, other families and our staff as safe as possible. Please be assured that the safety of you and your baby is of paramount importance to us, and therefore all changes have been made after reviewing the best and most recent guidance from Public Health England and the Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists.

 

It is really important that you continue to read Government advice, as the picture is very fluid and changing frequently as new information is learnt about Covid-19. The guidance we offer you is therefore open to change on a frequent basis. The most current information can be found online from the Royal College of Obstetricians.

 

All members of the maternity services team within the community and the hospital are keeping their knowledge regarding guidance for pregnancy care during the pandemic very current, so if you have any questions about your care, please discuss them with your midwife or obstetrician.

 

It remains really important that if you have any concerns during your pregnancy (such as stomach pains, bleeding, reduced/changed movements) you don’t hesitate in contacting our Delivery Suite. You should also contact the Delivery Suite if you feel your labour has started. The midwives will be able to guide you as to when to come into hospital.

 

We understand that you may be worried about the impact of coronavirus on your pregnancy and your access to healthcare and have therefore provided information videos relating to aspects of your pregnancy and birth to enhance the information verbally provided to you by the midwifery team. 

 

We would like to reassure you that we will continue to provide you with the best care and support during these unprecedented times.