Pregnant woman forced to attend scans alone despite rule change, claims MP

Olivia Blake, MP for Sheffield Hallam, ran a campaign in 2020 which convinced the NHS to alter Covid-19 restrictions and allow pregnant women to have one person with them.

It came after Ms Blake and a number of other women found out they had miscarried while attending appointments alone.

However, the Labour MP said some trusts in Essex and Birmingham are not following the updated guidance and asking pregnant women to come by themselves due to concerns about Covid.

She has raised the issue with health secretary Sajid Javid and is urging him to ensure all trusts are following the guidance.

She said: “The guidance is crystal clear, so why is it that women are always the after for when these decisions are taken?

“We need to make sure that people are not being left in situations where they're getting bad news on their own and having these experiences which are going to harm their mental health in the future as well.

“I want to make sure the health secretary continues to take steps to make sure the guidance continues to be followed now and in future waves of the pandemic, because the impact on women is huge.”

NHS England said the guidance for all trusts clearly states pregnant women should be allowed to have one other attend scans and other maternity appointments with them.

The guidance states: “Pregnant women value the support from a partner, relative, friend or other person through pregnancy and childbirth as it facilitates emotional wellbeing and is a key component of safe and personalised maternity care.

“It is therefore our aim, further to a risk assessment, that a woman should have access to support from a person of her choosing at all stages of her maternity journey and that all trusts facilitate this.”