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 Her hospital told her that if she had any symptoms of a cold, a
fever or runny nose, her newborn baby, due in April, may be isolated
from her for two weeks as a precaution against the new disease. She
might not be allowed to breastfeed.
"I'm not afraid of the virus but I feel angry," Legat said from her
home in Prague. "Until the birth, we are staying home, and won't
meet with anyone."
As the coronavirus pandemic sweeps across Europe, prompting
restrictions on public life and putting unprecedented strain on
hospitals, pregnant women like Legat are preparing to give birth
with a mixture of anxiety, anger and hope.
Some are worried about being separated from their babies. Others
regret not being able to have a partner present at the birth. Many
are having to accept reduced pre-natal medical appointments.
Healthcare authorities have introduced varying rules in different
countries, deciding whether a woman can be accompanied during
childbirth, for example, of if she must be separated from her baby
if she is sick.
In some cases these rules are more stringent than recommendations
issued by the World Health Organization (WHO), reflecting global
uncertainty about how the virus acts and how best to prevent it
spreading.
The WHO says there is no evidence that pregnant women are at higher
risk of severe illness than the general population if they contract
the COVID-19 disease, caused by the new coronavirus.
It recommends that women who have tested positive for the virus
should be encouraged to care for and breastfeed their newborns as
normal, provided they maintain stringent hygiene.
AFRAID OF BEING ALONE
Marika Antolec-Walczak, 34, a judge from Tychy in southern Poland,
knew if she went into labour early she would not have been able to
travel to her nearby hospital, converted into an infectious disease
unit because of the pandemic.
But what she was most afraid of was being alone.
"The first two times I gave birth, my husband was indispensable in
helping me cope with the pain," she said.
Most hospitals in Poland do not allow women to be accompanied during
childbirth, even though the WHO recommends "having a companion of
choice present during delivery".
"It's a threat not only to the patient and the child but also to
medical personnel," said Michal Bulsa, an obstetrician in Szczecin,
a city in northwestern Poland. "I wouldn't allow it."
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For women elsewhere in Europe, having a partner share the experience of
childbirth is an option. In Italy, which has been the hardest hit by the disease
in Europe, some hospitals allow women to be accompanied during the birth, but
not afterwards.
The challenges of giving birth during the coronavirus crisis do not end there.
Some women have been told not to arrive at the hospital too early - a tough call
to make, especially for first-time mothers - to minimise the chance of infecting
others or being infected.
Shopping for a newborn is also tough, with most stores closed in many parts of
Europe. Borrowing a crib from a friend in another town may no longer be possible
with travel restricted across much of the continent.
Valentina Draghi, a 41-year-old speech therapist from Milan, started her
maternity leave in February, weeks before her April 7 due date.
She had hoped to go shopping for clothes with her baby girl's grandmothers and
attend prenatal classes.
"All of a sudden nothing of what I had planned is left," she said.
She was told she would have to go through labor wearing a protective mask.
"My partner may be present, but in two weeks I do not know what will happen,"
she said. "My biggest fear is that they won't let him in. I know it's forbidden
elsewhere."
"It's my first pregnancy. I'm 41 years old. I'd like it to be a unique and
important event," she said.
For Louise Koldsgaard, trusting the healthcare system in Denmark gives her a
sense of calm.
"My midwife told me: maternity wards have never been cleaner," she said. "I try
not to let it get to me too much. I still walk my dog every day and drink coffee
at the local shop."
(Additional reporting by Stine Jacobsen and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen in
Copenhagen, Joanna Plucinska in Warsaw, Malgorzata Wojtunik in Gdansk, Luiza
Ilie in Bucharest, Clara-Laeila Laudette in Madrid, Johan Ahlander in Stockholm,
Kate Kelland in London; Writing by Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Mike Collett-White
and Janet Lawrence)
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