Covid-19: Pregnant women delaying vaccination with “Russian roulette”

Up to 50% of some pregnant women in Auckland are at high risk of hospitalization and complications Premature baby If they catch COVID-19..

Doctors and midwives across the country are preparing for the influx of unvaccinated pregnant women infected with the virus as Delta Continue to spread..

Ministry of Public Health Do not record For privacy reasons, someone’s pregnancy status as part of the Covid-19 rollout.

However thing Obtained vaccination rate for pregnant women Auckland From credible sources that they said they were anxiously low. They were afraid that the proportion of pregnant women could be even lower in other parts of the country where Delta is not yet widespread.

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Only 25% of pregnant women on the Manukau County Health Commission (DHB) are fully immunized against Covid-19 (well behind 75% of the DHB’s eligible population who had two jabs).

An additional 25% have been vaccinated once and 50% have not been vaccinated.

Fifty-one percent of pregnant women booked to give birth in Auckland DHB are fully immunized against Covid-19 (compared to 82% of the total population covered) and 22% receive a single jab. , 27% are unvaccinated.

In Waitematā DHB, 51% of women who will give birth in the next two weeks are completely jabed (compared to 78% of this DHB eligible population), 19% are single doses and 30% It was a single dose. I was not vaccinated.

None of the DHBs reviewed data or answered questions about how they deal with low vaccination renewals in pregnant women.

DHB in other parts of the country said thing They were unable to provide vaccination rates to pregnant women.

Stephanie Cox, an Oakland DHB obstetrician, said doctors and midwives across the country are preparing unvaccinated pregnant women to become infected with Covid-19.

UK statistics show almost 20% of the most severe Covid patients I am a pregnant woman who has not been vaccinated.

U.S. hospitals report a similar surge without vaccination Pregnant woman is seriously ill and dying From Covid-19.

More than five pregnant women in New Zealand have already landed in Auckland hospitals with Covid-19 at the outbreak this year, a disproportionate number.

Cox said the mixed message about the safety of the Covid-19 vaccine during the early stages of the pandemic caused confusion. But last year, she said, the advice that vaccines are absolutely safe at any stage of pregnancy was clear and consistent.

A study of hundreds of thousands of participants found no increased risk of miscarriage or fetal abnormalities in pregnant women who received the Pfizer vaccine.

The Pfizer vaccine does not cross the placenta, but the antibodies produced by the mother in response to the vaccine do pass and protect the baby.

Nonetheless, Cox said that half of the women she saw every day were naturally worried about taking medication during pregnancy, so it’s better to wait until the baby is born.

“My fear is that they are very vulnerable and the Covid-19 is accelerating in the community, it’s like a Russian roulette game.”

Dr. Morgan Edwards, an obstetric anesthesiologist at Waitematā, said healthy pregnant women are four times more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit and need ventilation if they catch Covid.

Edwards sharing information about pregnancy and Covid Instagram With more than 43,000 followers, she said she was getting more and more questions from patients and followers about incorrect information.

“I am a mother myself. I absolutely admit that pregnancy is a very valuable time to be aware of everything we put into our body, but vaccines are safe and we have to receive it. It can have catastrophic consequences. “

She said two Auckland mothers gave birth prematurely because of Covid-19, one of which gave birth late in the second trimester of pregnancy.

Auckland obstetrician Michelle Wise said midwives and doctors across the country are preparing to take care of infected pregnant women in communities and hospitals.

“Young, healthy, unvaccinated women with no underlying illness become very ill with Covid. It is pregnant that leaves them vulnerable.”

Foreign data and anecdotal evidence confirm that pregnant women are a group of under-vaccinated groups across all ethnic groups, she said.

The Ministry of Health has posted information on the importance of vaccination of pregnant women on its website, created a leaflet for practitioners to provide to women, and plans a session on Facebook next week to help people learn more about viruses and pregnancy. Said that. And pregnancy. This session will include the opportunity to answer questions from a variety of healthcare professionals.

“The health care system is ready and ready to provide care to everyone diagnosed with Covid, including pregnant people,” said a spokesman.

“Currently, plans are underway to provide care for Covid-positive people, including the needs of pregnant people.”