As many as 110 pregnant women infected by coronavirus delivered healthy babies safely at Srikakulam Government General Hospital, thanks to the special efforts of the doctors, nurses and other medical staff.
An exclusive ward for them has been created in the second floor of the hospital and special care was taken in the maternity centre for the safe birth of babies.
Head of Obstetrics and Gynaecology I. Vani and senior gynaecologist R. Aravind conducted a special training programme for all doctors, nurses and staff in handling pregnant cases in June itself. They instilled confidence among them to take up the responsibility. As per the assurance, they supplied PPE kits to all of them and made them participate wholeheartedly in the deliveries.
“As per the guidelines of the World Health Organisation and the Indian Council of Medical Research, breastfeeding is allowed for just born babies. Mothers were asked to cover their faces with masks while feeding the babies. After that, the babies are kept in cradles to avoid close touch with mothers. The coronavirus tests conducted on infants showed a negative result in spite of breastfeeding, which is a good sign,” said Dr. Vani.
Counselling
Dr. Aravind said that the pregnant women were counselled to be calm during deliveries in view of their COVID-19 condition. “Soon after admission the pregnant women were tested and those who showed positive for COVID-19 were put in the exclusive ward created for them. Constant counselling helped them stay calm and that ensured more than 50 normal deliveries out of 110,” he said.
“The women could overcome COVID-19 also as a majority of them had good immunity due to their young age. The special care and training helped us prevent COVID-19 infection among the doctors and staff,” he added.
A new mother from Gangatarapuram of Kanchili mandal was quite happy with the special care taken in the ward. “We were worried about the doctors and the staff getting infected. Their devotion to duty is laudable,” she said.
Another new mother from Balligattulu village of Kaviti mandal said that the GGH had come to their rescue when many private hospitals had refused admissions. “I was anxious about the baby’s health. Fortunately, my baby tested negative in spite of breastfeeding. I hope everything will be normal for me in a few days with the support of the doctors and the staff,” she added.
