I am having a csection soon and inquired on current policy at Shady grove Adventist . I was surprised to hear that there is no mandatory or incentives for the shady grove staff to get the covid vaccine. Additionally, they could not provide me with any estimates on the percentage of staff that had been vaccinated. I find this alarming given the close contact with patients.

You can call Shady Grove and ask to speak to the labor & maternity ward for updates on COVID protocols

Any updates to protocol? Are docs/nurses wearing PPE? Testing all maternity patients happening any time soon?

I just delivered at Shady Grove 3 days ago. You will not have to wear a mask (At this point in time anyway) but your supper person has to when they leave your room for water, food from the cafeteria etc. your support person cannot leave the hospital and they are strongly encouraging you to leave after 24 hours for a vaginal birth and 48 for c section. They won’t “make you” leave but it’s pushed. Other than that, no other changes for labor and delivery

i would encourage you to call them or send an email to ask them why they aren't testing when other hospitals are. The more they hear from the concerned who have studies to back up (like the recent NYP study) the more likely they are to do something. I contacted them and got a response that policies may change and that concern will get directed to people who make the decision. Wouldn't it be a large % of lost revenue for hospital (with Covid, what are the big revenue generators for a hospital right now?) if women start moving their births to hospitals that test, if they're not too far along and able to?

I’m also at WHC and have an induction scheduled in two weeks. I’ve been wondering how long the test will take and what they’ll do with you/partner until then. And I don’t why they aren’t testing partners. Feels like both should be tested. We’ve been strictly self isolating so I know there is a slim chance I’d test positive (except that I have to go to weekly NSTs at WHC this and next week) but I know I’ll be so anxious waiting for those test results knowing that I’ll have to labor alone if they’re positive. Also, agree that laboring in a mask seems terrible. I’d been planning to forgo an epidural but now that WHC is also not offering nitrous (used this for my first birth) and thinking about the mask situation and just general situation I’m not sure about the epidural.

I'm delivering at WHC in a month. The latest email from the hospital says that all laboring women admitted to L&D will be tested. I assume this must be a quick turnaround test, though the email didn't specify time. If the woman tests positive, her partner is sent home immediately and she delivers in a quarantine ward. The email also referenced a "special" nursery where the baby would be cared for. I am not sure what that means and haven't had a phone appt since getting the email in order to ask...

The thought of laboring with a mask is fairly daunting. I was hospitalized about a month ago with contractions due to severe dehydration and had to wear a mask - just dealing with those not-real-labor contractions in a mask was hard!

I have two friends who gave birth this week. Both wore masks. It was OK and they and their babies are well!

I mean, I’ll do it...but I can’t imagine going through the exertion of pushing a baby out while breathing through a mask. I needed all the oxygen I could get for that the first time around!!!

GW is apparently doing 4 hour testing on women admitted to labor and their partners. They are still asking everyone to wear a mask which seems reasonable as a) it’s still unclear what false negative rate is for tests and b) easier to enforce and keep track of if everyone has to do it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I will 100% wear a mask to protect nurses and doctors and health care workers. What if I am carrying this virus and am without symptoms?

I am willing to be uncomfortable to protect the folks caring for others.

I mean... if they are testing you they will know you if don't have the virus right?

The tests take days to come back.

There was a study from Columbia Presbyterian in NYC where they tested 100% of the women coming in for delivery. The large majority of women who tested positive were asymptomatic. So, keep in mind that if they allow you to labor without a mask, then they are allowing other women to. In the course of a week, it seems inevitable that they'd become exposed, and share it with you. I think that having a newborn and COVID would be pretty scary, so while I'd rather not labor with a mask, I think I'd prefer it to the other option.