Read on Twitter
THREAD on being forced to give birth alone: Hong Kong’s arbitrary, unique and quietly implemented decision, made in spite of WHO recommendations and fears over lasting negative effects. 1/14
As of today, the Hospital Authority has quietly reinstated its ban on partners in delivery rooms. You won’t find this info online because, as in the previous 2 times this ban has been in place this year, women are only told of this on arrival at the hospital to give birth. 2/14
This ban was previously in place between Feb-July and Aug-Nov. No official announcements were made then either. There is no threshold of Covid cases for the ban to be instated or removed - it is up to the discretion of the HA. 3/14
This ban focuses on the private delivery room, containing just the mother and the relevant doctor/midwife/nurse. Even pre-Covid, dads weren’t allowed on public labour wards, and could only visit briefly afterwards. But now, women must be alone during delivery too. 4/14
Here’s what doesn’t make sense. I live in the same household as my husband, and me and the baby will be going straight home with him afterwards. Our risk/exposure level is identical. 5/14
Women admitted for labour are immediately given a Covid test, with results within a couple of hours. Why can’t the partner be tested at the same time, and allowed to join for delivery if they test negative? 6/14
Via bump groups, I’ve spoken to women all over the world about current restrictions in their countries. While they vary greatly according to how long/how many partners may be with the mother, there is not a single other country which forces women to be alone during delivery. 7/14
Anecdotally, they’ve told me that doctors all over the world see this as a human rights issue, and that forcing a woman to deliver alone ultimately does more harm than good. 8/14
It goes against the WHO’s recommendations of a woman’s rights during childbirth https://www.who.int/news/item/09-09-2020-every-woman-s-right-to-a-companion-of-choice-during-childbirth 9/14
A recent BMJ article suggested that it could have lasting negative effects. https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2020/09/24/birth-partners-are-not-a-luxury/ 10/14
Let’s not forget that HK’s cases, while rising in the 4th wave, are still a drop in the ocean compared to the rest of the world. This ban is and always has been a gross overreaction. 11/14
HK’s maternity hospitals have a well-deserved reputation for providing some of the best medical care in the world. They also have a reputation for often being unsympathetic towards women’s wants and needs during pregnancy and birth. 12/14
Obviously, keeping medical staff safe is an absolute priority. But compared to other regulations in place, and the actual risk level involved, forcing women to deliver alone just seems cruel and arbitrary. 13/14
If you’re affected by this, or would like to speak up for women’s rights in HK, please call your local hospital’s Patient Representative Officer https://www.ha.org.hk/visitor/ha_visitor_index.asp?Content_ID=10043&Lang=ENG&Dimension=100&Parent_ID=10042&Ver=HTML or email [email protected] 14/14
(This should of course have been [email protected], and Patient Relations Officer. Thought I’d done so well in going 14 tweets without a typo…)
