A mother and baby were separated immediately after birth after the woman tested positive for the coronavirus in Jerusalem’s Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem, a spokesperson for the medical center said Monday.
The woman had been in home quarantine and was brought to a specialized isolation unit — away from the normal birthing ward and staffed by two midwives in protective gear — when she went into labor, the hospital spokesperson said.
After the baby was born, tests revealed that the mother, 35, was indeed a carrier of the virus, requiring her to be moved to the hospital’s isolation ward with other coronavirus patients, while the child was taken away.
“The mother is being surrounded by love and warmth from the staff. During her hospitalization, photos of the newborn baby were sent to her, as he was surrounded by love and constant attention. She is even being updated directly by phone by the doctor treating him,” the hospital said.
“There’s no doubt that these are not easy days for her, but it was of the utmost importance that she return to her baby when she is healthy and well. Together, we will overcome these complicated and challenging days,” the spokesperson said.
The Health Ministry on Monday reported additional cases of the novel coronavirus in Israel, bringing the total number of confirmed infections up to 255.
Israel shuttered schools and most businesses over the past week in a bid to stem the spread of the virus in order to avoid overwhelming the country’s health infrastructure.
Doctors complained on Monday that they had insufficient protective equipment for treating patients with the deadly virus, after 18 medical professionals contracted the disease.
“For days we have been warning of oversights, of protocols and instructions for checks that do not fit with the situation — all of these are leading to infiltrations, ticking time bombs in the wards, where [patients] are being received by teams lacking protective equipment, who are becoming infected and infecting others,” Dr. Rey Biton, of the medical residents organization Mirsham, wrote on Facebook.
Nineteen of the Israelis who have contracted the virus are medical professionals, most of whom are suspected to have been infected by their patients.