Birth in the age of coronavirus: How families are welcoming their newborns to the world
Coronavirus is restricting hospital visitors, but that hasn’t stopped families from welcoming newborns into the world.
While some loved ones have turned to technology, others took a more creative approach.
In South Carolina, one couple expected to welcome their baby alone, but their “bonus family” had a different idea.
With their relatives living out of town, their friends became the welcoming committee by holding signs while standing on top of a parking garage across from their hospital window, dad Gary Frye told McClatchy News in a phone interview Friday.
The family isn’t alone.
To help slow the spread of COVID-19, hospitals across the country have limited the number of people who can visit patients in their labor and delivery units. Sometimes, that means only a partner can join the mother who is giving birth.
Separated by glass
Photos from Massachusetts and Ohio show loved ones catching glimpses of their new family members through hospital windows, news outlets report.
The Zoppos had always envisioned having relatives with them in the hospital during the birth of their first child, but the baby’s new grandmother couldn’t get beyond a pane of glass, KSBY reports.
“To see little Theo in the window, it just means the world because it feels like I’m still interacting with him even though I’m not holding him and it’s so emotional,” grandmother Jeannie Zoppo told the California TV station.
In Michigan, one man was able to hold his granddaughter two times before the pandemic kept the girl’s family inside, according to a new dad’s Instagram post. Now, he walks 4 miles to look through the window of her home, the post said.
“If this grandpa can resist coming inside and loving his first grandchild, I know the rest of us can do this too,” the girl’s father wrote.
Baby’s first video chat
Some families are also turning to a more high-tech option.
A new mom in Louisiana set up a video chat inside a hospital to introduce her baby to family members, WAFB reported.
“I have such a big support system, and knowing that they could not be here today with me was just really hard on me,” Alaina McNabb told the station.
In Oregon, grandparents are learning how to use video calls so they can see their 2-month-old grandchild through a smartphone screen, The Oregonian reported.
The baby’s mom, Val Mackinnon Peterman, told the newspaper she was worried about her parents getting the virus if they came to see the newborn.
Older people and those with underlying conditions are most at risk for getting seriously sick from COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Protecting babies and visitors
In addition to restricting visitors, hospitals are screening people who come inside for symptoms of the coronavirus.
One dad-to-be couldn’t accompany his wife inside an Atlanta-area medical center until he received his results from a coronavirus test, USA Today reported.
Another dad covered up his symptoms to be inside an upstate New York hospital for the birth of his child, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reported. His wife later showed signs of the virus, according to the newspaper.
Even before their babies are born, expectant parents have been practicing social distancing to help limit their exposure to COVID-19.
A Maryland family hosted a “drive-thru baby shower” with decorated cars and a gift drop-off, WJZ-TV reported.
This story was originally published April 3, 2020 at 8:20 AM with the headline "Birth in the age of coronavirus: How families are welcoming their newborns to the world."
