03/25/2020
COVID-19 Update – Mar 24, 2020
Dear Clients,
You have likely heard of the many ways that the new coronovirus is impacting our world. We would like to provide you with some information about how the current pandemic will affect your midwifery care.
We are committed to providing you with excellent midwifery care, while doing everything possible to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. We have implemented the most recent public health updates, and we will continue to change our practice to meet the standards as they evolve.
The Chief Medical Officer of Ontario has issued a directive requiring all health care providers to stop or reduce to minimal levels all non-essential services. The College of Midwives has directed us to minimize in-person contact, and provide care remotely by phone, whenever possible. We have made a number of changes to the way that we provide midwifery care, to help keep our clients, midwives and community safe.
SCREENING
• You will be screened using a series of questions before every home, clinic or hospital visit
• If you have symptoms of COVID-19 or are in isolation, you may be asked to come to the clinic or to the hospital for all visits, instead of being seen at home.
PRENATAL AND POSTPARTUM CARE
• Please do not bring any support people or children to your clinic visits. During home visits, please do not allow anyone other than mom and baby in the room while the midwife conducts her visit. Support people can call in by phone to visits if needed.
• When attending visits at the clinic, wait in your vehicle until your appointment time, use hand sanitizer when you enter the clinic, and leave the clinic immediately after your visit.
• We will follow the same schedule of prenatal and postpartum visits as we have in the past, however some of your visits will happen over the phone instead of in-person.
• In-person visits will be very short and limited to physical assessments only (blood pressure, fetal heart rate checks, weighing baby, etc).
• Before or after your in-person visits, a phone or video call visit will occur so that you can ask questions and have informed choice discussions with your midwives.
• We will see clients for in-person visits according to the schedule recommended by the World Health Organization. This is about 8 visits in a healthy pregnancy, and 2-4 visits in the postpartum period.
• Additional visits will occur as needed for clients with risk factors.
BIRTHS
• Depending on the availability of midwives, hospital resources and personal protective equipment, you may not be able to give birth in the location you prefer. We will try to notify you in advance if you will need to change your birth location.
• We may need to call a nurse, physician or 2nd attendant to assist the primary midwife at the birth, instead of a second midwife.
• You may have only one support person with you in labour, regardless of birth location.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
• If one of your midwives needs to self-isolate, you may have a midwife you have not met before attend your birth or visits.
• Library books and birth pools will not be available for clients to borrow.
• We ask for your patience during this challenging time. This is a new virus, so information and recommendations are changing daily. Please ask your midwives if you have any questions.
Please do your part to reduce the spread of this virus by following public health recommendations. Wash your hands or use hand sanitizer, and stay home whenever possible! You can read more about the coronavirus at the following websites:
Government of Canada Public Health
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19.html
Ontario Ministry of Health
https://www.ontario.ca/page/2019-novel-coronavirus
Wellington Dufferin Guelph Public Health
https://www.wdgpublichealth.ca/
