Protocols for expecting moms under review

The Iloilo City government will temporarily stop receiving pregnant women who are infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in quarantine facilities while protocols in handling expecting mothers are being reviewed.

The decision came after one pregnant woman was allegedly “overlooked” by medical personnel when she delivered her baby at St. Therese Hospital.

Based on the incident report of the Iloilo City COVID-19 Team, a pregnant COVID-19 patient was admitted to St. Therese Hospital on Sept 30, 2020.

St. Therese Hospital, which serves as one of the quarantine facilities for positive patients in the city, was not accepting positive pregnant patients, according to Dr. Roland Jay Fortuna, head of the City COVID-19 Team.

“The management of St. Therese were forced to accept the patient because she was already turned down by other hospitals,” Fortuna said in a press conference on Thursday.

Medical personnel were on the process of donning personal protective equipment (PPEs) in preparation to go inside the patient’s room when the mom delivered her baby at around 1:30 p.m.

Relatives of the patient claimed that the doctor assigned to the quarantine facility refused to attend to the patient who was already giving birth.

They alleged that the management of the St. Therese Hospital took the patient for granted.
The mother of the patient claimed that the doctor told her daughter, “daku-daku gani tatoo mo sa likod wala ka nasakitan, tapos magbata ka hibe-hibe ka (You have a big tattoo on your back then you cry while giving birth).”

In a statement, Mayor Jerry Treñas clarified that the city government has dealt accordingly with the positive pregnant patient and ensured that proper protocols were strictly implemented amid the threats of COVID-19.

“I am very sorry to the owners of St. Therese Hospital. We have been allowed to use this without any compensation, and due to this instance, we have brought their name into this incident. We will review our protocols in accepting our positive patients, and we will review any and all protocols in order to ensure that this will never happen again,” Treñas said in a statement on Thursday.

The mayor said protocols were followed as the doctors and the medical personnel were not fully equipped with PPEs during the incident.

The patient and her baby child are now admitted to Western Visayas Medical Center.

The medical doctors who attended them at St. Therese are under quarantine.
Following the incident, the City COVID-19 Team said they are planning to establish a dedicated quarantine facility for pregnant COVID patients to prevent similar events from happening.

According to Fortuna, the facility will have a standby midwife and gynecologist who will be ready to respond to any emergencies.