Members can no longer attend 20-week pregnancy scan, Rotunda announces

Updated 2 hours ago

PARTNERS will no longer be allowed to attend the 20-22 week pregnancy scan, Rotunda Hospital announced.

The Rotunda, one of Dublin’s leading maternity hospitals, made the announcement today.

A spokesperson said the “very difficult decision” was made “due to the increase in community-acquired Covid-19 infections and the move to Level 5 restrictions.”

The change in the visitation policy will take effect from tomorrow.

The partners were unable to attend the 20-week anatomy scan for most of 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions before many hospitals reversed this position.

However, due to a recent spike in cases of the virus, more maternity hospitals are also expected to update their visiting policy.

A spokesman for the National Maternity Hospital said there are “currently no visitor restrictions” for members attending 20-22 week scans at Holles Street Hospital in Dublin. However, they said this position may change.

“Given the current public health context, the need for restrictions is continually reviewed. Any changes to the current policy are published on the hospital’s social media channels, ”they added.

Women attending Coombe Hospital must go to their appointments alone. A spokesperson said the hospital’s Covid Executive Committee “reviews the situation daily every morning.”

Pregnant people attending Cork University Maternity Hospital for their 20-week scan can bring a designated chaperone, but that situation is “under review,” a spokesperson said.