Srinagar: While the ongoing pandemic has pushed routine medical procedures of various hospitals to the margins, Lalla Ded Hospital, the main maternity hospital in the Valley, being a non-Covid hospital continues with its ‘business as usual’ providing varied maternity services, an official press release said Wednesday.
“We are receiving eighty to one hundred patients on a daily basis even during the prevailing pandemic”, the press release quoted the gynecologist, Dr Syed Masooma Rizvi as saying.
She said that people should take responsibility regarding adherence to safety precautions against Covid-19 and follow general and specific SOPs.
“Pregnant women shall adopt a proper strategy to keep themselves safe from infection. Even if a pregnant woman catches the virus, she need not to fear,” the doctor said and added that out of all the infected pregnant ladies, 80 percent are asymptomatic while 18 percent develop mild symptoms.
She further added that only 2 percent pregnant ladies were severely affected after catching infection, who needed hospitalization for treatment.
Pregnant women can also monitor their health and measure their oxygen saturation during infection. She advised that they too have to follow Covid-19 protocols and be cautious about nutrition too.
Dr Rizvi emphasized on timely identification of infection for treatment and appealed expecting mothers to not hide infection because such behaviour would put lives of other people in danger.
During pregnancy, Covid infected women shall isolate themselves in both symptomatic or asymptomatic situations, Dr Masooma Rizvi said told while talking about pandemic and precautionary measures for pregnant women. She advised their families to passionately help them during the difficult period at home.
Regarding medical examination and requirement of investigations during pregnancy, Dr Rizvi said that such women shall seek advice from doctors through tele-consultations and informed that under e-Sanjeevni OPD, different gynaecologists of Lalla Ded Hospital are providing consultancy to expecting ladies from 10am to 4pm every day on telephone.
She also said that the government has provided facilities for pregnant women in Covid and non-Covid hospitals in every district, so pregnant women shall not conceal their coronovirus infection if they have symptoms or have tested positive.
“It is necessary for every patient to have Covid negative report while visiting a hospital,” she said, adding that Covid tests are also conducted by the hospital at the time of admission.
The gynaecologist also said that some Covid positive pregnant patients reach hospital at the time of emergency and added at such a critical point such patients are to be treated at the hospital to save life.
“We have examined and treated almost six hundred such patients since the outbreak of pandemic,” Dr Rizvi stated.
“If a Covid positive pregnant woman reaches to our hospital in advance, she is referred to Covid hospital depending on the intensity of her infection,” doctor informed and further added “it is better to take Covid positive patients to identified Covid hospital to avoid spread of infection in non-Covid hospitals”.
Regarding the vaccination for pregnant women, she said that the Government of India has not given permission for such women till now. The recommendations are very strong for vaccination, once the government gives formal permission, then only they can go for it, she added.
She further requested that a healthy attendant should accompany a patient to avoid crowding in hospitals and help in containment of virus.
