60,000 people have signed a letter, calling on the government and NPHET to ease restrictions at maternity hospitals.
The HSE has advised hospitals to allow partners to attend:
Labour, the 20 week scan and visit a child in neonatal ICU .
However each hospital decides when and if that’s safe.
Yep women are not given any guidance on maternity restrictions being lifted if the local outbreaks allow... https://t.co/jTtMlmJIIr
— Trice Hosford (@Pattieios) May 10, 2021
Partners Must Wait In Car Parks
Seeing loved ones waiting by hospital steps and in carparks has become a familiar image in the last 15 months.
That's as many maternity services are keeping restrictions tight in their facility.
Women are alone in hospital until they enter labour.
The Chairperson of the Maternity advocacy group AIMS Kyrsia Lynch says they can be without a loved one for up to two days:
"So that means you could be 48 hours, with contractions, with no access to pain reflief, with no partner and nobody helping you along."
Just before Xmas Eimear had appt in early pregnancy unit for bleeding.
All was ok thankfully but we were so worried at time. This was as close as I could get.
Maternity restrictions are a constant source of stress & hurt for women & partners #WhoseNeedsAreBeingMet pic.twitter.com/AZrbmgRXCk— Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (@Donnchadhol) May 5, 2021
"It's Inhumane I Think"
Labour Senator Rebecca Moynihan says NPHET needs to take leadership on this issue:
She wants "guidance on how partners can be allowed to attend scans, the labour ward and visits safely."
Broadcaster Rebecca Horan is expecting her second child later this year.
She says remembering and recalling information for your partner outside is challenging:
"Women with not so fabulous news, going out in tears, trying to locate their partners, or ringing them or whatever."
"It's inhumane I think."
AIMs will demonstrate against the issue at 8 maternity facilities over the next two days.
