How coronavirus fears affect pregnant women in China

China is worst-affected by the coronavirus, with 3042 deaths and 80,552 infections. And in such a scenario, the prevailing fear is felt even by pregnant and new mothers who are giving birth alone, keeping their newborns inside and opting for costlier hospitals to prevent the spread of infection.

One such mother, surnamed Xie, said that she gave birth to her baby girl in Wuhan alone earlier this month, since her family members were not allowedto accompany her to the hospital.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Xie faced a lot of difficulties during the pre-natal checks as the roads were blocked and she was afraid to visit hospitals fearing cross-infection.

"They let you out when you are delivering a baby," Xie said.

"When I got there, there was only one ward left."

Wuhan, which has witnessed most of the COVID-19 deaths, is under lockdown since late January when the outbreak began, thereby affecting 56 million people.

State media shared propaganda videos which showed volunteers in hazmat suits driving pregnant women to hospitals.

But Xu Tingting from Huanggang said that she struggled to find a vehicle to reach to the hospital when she went into labour two weeks before her due date.

"I was having contractions every 10 minutes, and asked my parents to take me to the hospital. It took them nearly two hours to find a car and I was panicking, thinking I'd have to deliver at home without assistance," Xu said.

"My husband was in another city and wasn't allowed to enter the town. It was the grocery store owner in our compound who finally agreed to take me in his delivery van."

Both Xie and Xu are still nervous to take their newborns to the hospital for vaccination over fears of the spread of the virus.

"There's still 20 days left for my baby to get vaccinated, I hope by then the situation is under control," Xie said.

The problem is not just bothering residents of virus-epicentre Wuhan, Beijing-based Angelika Fu has chosen a private hospital despite the cost being 10 times more.

"We opted for a private hospital, although costlier, because we wanted to avoid crowds and feel safe," Fu said.

However, Fu is optimistic and says that the situation is getting improved.

"At least, that's what I want to believe," she said.

Mental health service providers have also received a large number of calls from new mothers.

"Over the last month, dozens of pregnant women and new mums have been calling us with stress or anxiety-related concerns," said a volunteer at Beijing International Christian Fellowship, which runs a mental health hotline.

Theresa Ying, who gave birth to her baby in Beijing two days after Wuhan was put under lockdown said that the fears about this virus caused a lot of stress.

"For the baby's first-month vaccination, we asked a friend to buy the vaccine from Singapore and paid a nurse to come home and administer it,'' Ying said.

"It's costly, but I am afraid to take my baby out."

(With AFP inputs)