Pregnant women will be given priority for 15-minute Covid tests, says PM

Pregnant women were last night given a ray of hope as the Prime Minister said they will be prioritised in a roll-out of 15-minute Covid tests to make sure they can have a partner by their side for support.

In a win for The Mail on Sunday’s campaign to stop mothers-to-be being denied support during scans and labour, Boris Johnson said the ‘massive’ testing roll-out will include maternity wards because ‘no woman should go through labour alone’. 

It is understood the rapid tests will begin across NHS trusts within days.

The Mail on Sunday has campaigned for all hospitals to allow partners to be present. Many have refused to do so, contrary to official guidance.

Tory MP Alicia Kearns, who is expecting her second child in January, has led calls for the tests to be given to pregnant women and their partners to allow them both to be present in scans and labour.

Mr Johnson told this newspaper: ‘We will roll out quick turnaround tests in special clinical settings so those going through cancer treatment, women giving birth, those in paediatric settings can have their loved ones around them.

‘They will be able to be tested on entry to make sure their treatments, labour and visits can be done as safely as possible and the risk of infection in hospitals is minimised.

‘No woman should go through labour alone, which is why we will use testing to give women and their partners the support they need. 

‘I commend those who are tirelessly campaigning on this issue, including The Mail on Sunday and Alicia Kearns.’

It comes amid a stark warning over the mental health risks of banning women from having support.

A mother who went through a difficult birth and was banned from having her husband at her side has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Rosalind, who did not want to give her full name for fear of repercussions from her hospital trust, gave birth days into the first national lockdown. 

After arriving in hospital, she was left alone in a ward for two hours, denied pain relief and, later, water.

Because of Covid, the hospital was limiting the number of times staff could enter wards, which meant she went unattended when her contractions progressed very quickly.

The 31-year-old said staff wrongly assumed she was in the early stage of labour and ignored her cries for help. 

She said: ‘I thought I was going to die. If my husband had been there, he could have advocated for me.’

Rosalind described her son as a ‘miracle baby’, having been conceived after her husband had battled cancer.

He was banned from being with her – only to be called in for the ‘active’ part of labour after she had spent hours unattended and in pain.

The mother returned home from hospital to find her baby was tongue-tied, which requires a simple procedure to help it breastfeed.

Her trust said it had suspended the service during lockdown and it took five weeks for Rosalind to find a private clinic that would perform the procedure – by which time it was too late for breastfeeding to be established.

This summer she was diagnosed with PTSD and is being treated with antidepressants and therapy. She continues to have nightly flashbacks.

She has spoken out in a bid to stop other women going through her experience.

Yesterday, Rosalind was in tears over the news of the second lockdown. She said: ‘It’s bad enough it happened to me in April. 

‘It is absolutely unforgiveable that any woman should be going through it now.’

She spoke of her fear of being left alone in the house without childcare support from her family. ‘I just want to see my mum,’ she said.