PREGNANT WOMEN AND THE LOCKDOWN

Issues:

As we move on to get the realization that the lockdown is not going to end any sooner, we need to introspect and get insights of those who remain unnoticed in the events of quarantine. They are the ones who are the silent sufferers of the entire process of the pandemic.

We have been talking for the vulnerable section of the same society that is co-shared by them but is often neglected, and their problems are considered insignificant. They are not the workers, migrants or labourers but the pregnant women who might have the privilege to occupy a comfortable zone for her nativity but in such tensed times may be denied the maternal medical care. Or this may also include those who lie on the verge of vulnerability. They are even neglecting the basic amenities and aid that require normal child delivery. These women are carrying babies in their womb and walking day in and day out.

The extended Lockdown gives us a privilege to look into their lives and understand at least what their part of the story is and what hardships they are going through which remains heedless in these times of catastrophe.

Source: Unsplash By: Museums Victoria

Those who are at home:

Since the government hospitals all over the country are preoccupied to handle cases of COVID-19, it has become all the more difficult to admit women in labor pain one or two months prior to the delivery. They have been locked in their houses primarily dependent on the aid and assistance of those close to her, in some cases we find the help going smoothly but in the cases of troubled family relationships, this becomes much more uncertain. 

They have to sometimes carry out the daily household chores in order to make the domestic work go on, this may have a negative impact on their health as well as that of  the fetus. Sometimes they do not have an extra helping hand in their personal hygiene which, if neglected, may prove to be fatal. 

They are not able to have access to proper medical care, and if they do they have to suffer a lot in cases of lack of proper attention. The private hospitals have closed down completely in the apprehension of the virus being spread amongst their staff.

Other than that the PPE ( personal protective equipment) is in a severe scarcity, due to which the risk of women getting infected with the virus increases manifold.

On the face of it, we see that in the first place they are not able to have access to the hospitals fit for deliveries, and if they do, the hospitals are not well equipped with the required doctors, nurses and the medical staff to take care of her. In some cases, we saw the roadside deliveries which may have complications with regard to the women's health and that of the child.

 

Those who are not at home and are currently on foot:

The worst side of this lockdown has rendered difficulties to those who are currently on a move. They may be the daily wage labourers or the workers who have been dispossessed by their employers during such an inauspicious time. They are making their way home on foot walking distances difficult to measure, some carrying babies in their womb and some carrying their infants on their back. Some of them have made transient tents on the roadside and have no access to even the basic requirements like food and water let alone the maternal medical services.

The worst part is, in many cases, they do not even have a woman to take care of them.  

Case study:

Suman carries her infant child and is residing with her husband in a tent on the roadside with no milk for the baby to drink and no food for the parents to digest. She is working round the clock.

Kamlesh is yet another woman who got luxury to eat 3 puri and some sabzi when one SDM visited her place but after that she hasn't eaten anything let alone puri or sabzi.

A Pregnant woman didn't get anything to eat from Anganwadi and didn't eat anything for three days. A nine month pregnant lady is not being able to access the healthcare services and has no flour, oil, or potato. She is eating rice by mixing it with salt . She also has no ration cards.

Jamurwa is a rural place in U.P. where a woman has a one month old baby and she has only rice to eat that too in small quantities which will be consumed in one day or two.

She too doesn't have the ration card and bank account facilities to approach.

A woman expecting her child in 2 months, is making her way from one place to another in Nagpur. (Credible news reports)

A study from The Wire gives us the stories that are more melancholy and gloomy. A 28 year old gave birth in the emergency response vehicle on the way to Safdarjung hospital in Delhi. One gave birth in the ambulance itself while in a way to hospital in Surat. In some more cases , we find no ambulance services at hand like in Hyderabad and Punjab. In these cases the ambulance either didn't reach on time or they reached with a delay consequently they delivered on roadside. Though the deliveries went fine but in the long term the risk of infections and other complications would have definitely increased.

 

Way forward:

It seems that the government has turned a blind eye to them. In these times, the administration and the society have a simultaneous role to play. At the government level, at least some percentage of hospitals including the private ones should be reserved for providing the maternal first aid, and should be cumulatively checked for the virus. These hospitals should not be allowed to admit the Coronavirus affected patients so as to reduce the risk of infection through them to the pregnant women. The ambulances should be at a call away and should reach the destination on time since we have comparatively less traffic on road currently. The doctors and the nurses in these reserved hospitals should be well equipped with the desired medical kit.

Talking about the working women who are expecting their child in one or two months, the government officials should detect such women and should make them available with all basic amenities. At the local level, villages should be taken care of properly since they didn't have any proper facilities, even in normal times. The panchayats should be vigilant and be ready to help the government in their initiative to help the rural pregnant women.

At the personal level, we should be caring and helping enough until the government makes proper arrangements. Physical as well as mental support are the most desirable assets at these times.

WRITTEN BY: POOJA JANAGAL