Tuesday, 8 February 2022

COVID-19

Ms SANDELL (Melbourne) (15:39): Giving birth should be one of the happier times of your life, but during COVID times for many women it has been anything but. Michaela’s story is just one that represents what many women have gone through this year. When Michaela went into hospital to give birth a few weeks ago she unfortunately tested positive to COVID. Her husband also tested positive, so the hospital told him he could not come in to support her or witness the birth of his first child. But to make matters worse, Michaela was told she could not have anyone come in to support her birth at all, not even if they were COVID negative, were vaccinated and wore PPE. She had to give birth with no-one to support her except the hospital staff. When her daughter was born she was taken into isolation and Michaela did not get to see her for 36 hours, with little explanation of why.

I know many people are suffering right now—people are unable to get surgery they need and cannot visit loved ones dying in hospital, and nurses and hospital staff are doing an amazing job after a horrendous two years—but people giving birth should be allowed to have a support person with them even in COVID times. Many hospitals—like the Royal Women’s, where I will hopefully give birth to my baby in the middle of the year—are making this work and allowing support people, but it seems the decision is up to each individual hospital. I would like the Minister for Health to make a public statement making it clear that all hospitals should allow people giving birth, whether they have COVID or not, to have a support person with them. It would make the world of difference to people giving birth at this really uncertain time.