Mother forced back into quarantine, separated from premature son

A woman who unexpectedly went into labour while in quarantine has been ordered back into isolation without her premature baby son who was born at just 30 weeks. VOTE IN OUR POLL

A mother who prematurely went into labour while in hotel quarantine was left devastated when ordered back into isolation.

The woman gave birth to her baby at 30 weeks, a day after she was placed into two weeks of hotel quarantine at the Stamford Plaza in Brisbane after she arrived from Canada.

The baby was being cared for at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital’s highly specialist Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

The Courier-Mail understands the woman was returned to mandatory hotel quarantine several days after giving birth at the nearby RBWH.

The new mother said Queensland Health did not grant her an exemption until Wednesday, which was one day after The Courier-Mail asked questions about the matter.

“I’m sad, because I think about if he is well,” she said last night.

“It’s very difficult because I just want to stay with him and spend time with him.”

She was only allowed to spend only two hours a day with hew newborn son, she said.

The woman cried when she held him for the first time, and still cries when she visits him.

“I feel so lonely and I want to be with him,” she said.

The mother accepted that she had to follow the rules, but said it was an extremely difficult time.

In a statement, a Queensland Health spokesperson said the health and wellbeing of guests staying in hotel quarantine was a priority.

“Guests who require hospital treatment are taken to the nearest facility equipped to take care of their medical needs. This includes women who need to give birth,” the statement said.

“When the patient is ready to be safely discharged, they are returned to their hotel quarantine accommodation to complete the rest of their nominated quarantine time.

“All people in hotel quarantine are provided with the necessary support that they need, especially those who have recently received medical care.

“Staff at the hotel quarantine hotels will facilitate ­follow-up clinical care if ­required.”

In June, Moe and Sarah Haidar were separated from their newborn baby for more than a week after Ms Haidar experienced complications with pregnancy while in hotel quarantine.

The couple was placed into a specialist Covid-19 room at the RBWH following the birth of their son, while the newborn was kept in a separate part of the hospital.

At the time, then chief health officer Jeannette Young said it was important to keep vulnerable babies away from any potential risk of Covid-19.

Natalie Kondzic from Birth For Humankind – an organisation dedicated to improving maternal outcomes at birth – said the isolation throughout the pandemic has been keenly felt by new parents.

“It can be very overwhelming for them,” Ms Kondzic said.

“They have been unable to be with friends and family during this critical time which means having to adjust to parenthood without necessary emotional and practical support.

“For those in lockdowns or hotel quarantine during this time, these feelings of isolation must be compounded.

“Changes in the health system during the pandemic for the purposes of infection control, while needed, have unfortunately often contradicted people’s need for person-centred care, and may contribute to negative birth experiences and in some cases experiences of birth trauma.”