Yorkshire mum couldn't hold newborn baby for 10 days after testing positive for Covid during delivery

Mum-to-be Kristie Atherton from York sensed something was not right when she noticed reduced movements in her baby.

She said: "She was normally very wriggly and that particular morning she felt solid on one side. I also had period-type cramping. I had been induced for my first baby so I wondered if it could be labour, even though it was only 33 weeks."

She called the hospital and was taken in for basic tests, which came back showing something was wrong. Midwives immediately called the doctor and Ms Atherton was "petrified" as she was rushed into theatre for an emergency caesarean.

Her daughter Riley was born on 15 November, weighing just 4lb 12oz.

Ms Atherton had severe internal bleeding and Riley needed to be intubated and was taken to the special care baby unit (SCBU).

"I woke up from the general anaesthetic and I didn't even have a hospital gown on, there was no time because everything happened so quickly," she said.

Not only did Ms Atherton have to cope with the shock of the emergency surgery, she woke up to find out she had tested positive for Covid-19. This meant she had to isolate for ten days and all the rest of the family had to isolate for two weeks leaving Riley being cared for in the SCBU.

It meant she was unable to see or hold baby Riley and was unable to have any visitors, even close family.

"It took a while for it to sink in," she said.

Ms Atherton has no idea how she had become exposed to the virus as she had been especially careful because of her pregnancy.

Nevertheless, staff on the SCBU made a fuss of Riley and uploaded a stream of pictures and videos for Ms Atherton and her family.

Vikki Smith, ward manager on SCBU, said: “We have prepared for the situation where both parents may be unable to visit their baby on the unit for a long period of time because of the Covid-19 situation. It’s an anxious time for any parent to have your baby in the special care baby unit and we wanted to make sure we do everything we can to help them, especially if they are affected by Covid-19.

“Technology is playing a useful role helping them stay in touch and some time ago we purchased vCreate, a system which allows us to take both photos and videos of the babies and send them securely to the parents. It’s amazing!”

Ms Atherton said: “I had such great care from the midwives and doctors on the ward and it was such a relief to know Riley was being looked after so well in SCBU."

Nurses were a huge support as Ms Atherton was alone in hospital for a week while she recovered from the surgery and, even on their days off, staff would call to see how her and Riley were getting on.

The technology was "fantastic" at keeping her in the loop about Riley's care, she said.

"I saw her first bottle and had pictures of her in her first outfit dressed by the team on SCBU which I was able to share with the rest of the family. I couldn’t hold her myself for another 10 days so these moments were precious.

"It really helped with the bonding, especially with her older sister Freya who felt like she already knew her by the time she came home.

"You recover better knowing your baby is well looked after. I can't thank the staff enough."

Ms Atherton and her partner Mark were able to use a tablet computer to watch Riley sleep from home.

"We watched her sleep for an hour and talked to her so she could hear our voices."

Ms Atherton has a message for anyone who is pregnant and worried about visiting hospital at the moment.

"I want people to be aware that if something doesn't seem right, the hospital is the best place to be," she said.