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Pregnant Women, New Borns and COVID-19
Dr. Beck discusses pregnancy and new borns during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Learn more about Rachel Beck, MD
Rachel Beck, MD
For Rachel McCarthy Beck, MD, medicine is all about treating the whole person. She takes all of the body’s systems as well as the patient’s emotional well-being into account as she addresses obstetric and gynecologic needs. Prevention and education are at the heart of her patient care approach including regular screening exams and lifestyle improvements like healthy eating and exercise. Discovering a love for her chosen specialty during her third year of medical school, Dr. Beck enjoys employing her skills in prevention, education, surgery, delivering babies and helping women achieve and maintain optimum health.Learn more about Rachel Beck, MD
Transcription:
Scott Webb: Having a baby is a wonderful time for moms and dads to be. But having a baby during a global pandemic certainly raises questions and concerns here to help answer these questions is Dr. Rachel Beck. She's a practicing OB GYN and Chief of Staff at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital. This is Ask the Experts, a podcast from Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System. I'm Scott Webb. So Dr. Beck, thanks so much for joining me today. Got a lot to cover. Let's start here. Can the virus be transmitted to the fetus? Is it transmitted during birth? How does that work?
Dr. Beck: So far, the studies that have been done on pregnant patients have not shown any transmission of the virus to the fetus. So obviously it's limited data. This has not been around long enough for us to have, you know, hundreds and hundreds of deliveries. But the deliveries that we know about and most of the data's coming out of China has shown no vertical transmission. That means transmission from the mother to the baby. They have not found virus detected in the placental tissue or in the amniotic fluid. So those are good reports that we can give to moms. The risk obviously would be if a mother is infected with COVID after she delivers her child, you know, could she transmit the infection to her child post-delivery, just like she could transmit it to any other person in her household. And that's where we have to be careful.
Host: What a difficult thing to have to deal with. You know, the possibility of the mother being infected and then perhaps that most special of moments right in a parent's life is holding their baby for the first time and perhaps not being able to do that. That's just pretty heartbreaking to think of. And as you say, there's, there's just so much that's unknown right now, but at least we know, or we believe that the fetus is protected before they're born, which is good to know. So some hospitals in the country are not allowing partners in the room during birth, which is also a really special thing. I remember of course being in the room, you know, when both of my children were born and you know, incredible memories. So what about Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital? How are you guys handling that for now?
Dr. Beck: I agree. I think it's really important for a patient in labor to have a support person and we at Salinas Valley all are in agreement that that is an important person to have. So we are allowing one person to be in the labor and delivery room with the mom. We are limiting it to only one person. So there is a change in our visitor policy in that sense. You know, we used to say the mom could have one support person plus two other people in the room with her and we limiting it now just to one support person. But we think that that mom deserves a person to be there with her. And it is an important time. I mean it is a special time and it should be something that she shares with someone special in her life.
Host: Yeah, there's so much that is kind of abnormal about everything that is going on. But I can't imagine being a mom, you know, there to give birth and not having at least someone there with them. So I'm glad to know as I'm sure listeners are, that at least dad or someone can be there as a support person. You know, there's so many new studies coming out about the transmission and we spoke about that briefly. What advice are you giving expecting moms and dads right now about COVID-19 and, you know, just sort of what the expectations should be.
Dr. Beck: The good news is that what we know so far about the virus, it does not seem to affect pregnant women any worse than the non-pregnant population. So that's different from influenza where we know that if a pregnant woman is infected with influenza, her infection is often worse because of her pregnancy. So we are not seeing that with COVID. But having said that, that doesn't mean that they are protected either. So they are at risk just like everybody else. And so they should follow the same practices that everybody else is following, which is shelter in place, social distancing washing their hands being, you know, careful. Just like everybody else. To try and decrease that risk of transmission to them and their family.
Host: And of course I can remember when, you know, when my kids were newborns, all the things we need to do for COVID-19, most parents, you know, do all those things anyway. I was constantly washing my hands every time before, every time I picked up either one of my kids, I made sure to wash my hands before that, but especially good idea right now during COVID-19. And I didn't know that the, as you were explaining influenza, that it actually can be worse for pregnant moms. And glad to hear that that's not the case with COVID-19. So, I know this is a little bit outside, you know, your daily responsibilities, but if a baby is born with the virus or is infected soon after, what will that care consist of? Will the baby be isolated sent to the NICU? How are you guys planning on handling that?
Dr. Beck: So in our hospital, we are really following the guidelines that are set out by the CDC and the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine, SMFM and ACOG which is American College of OB GYN. And so those guidelines are changing as we learn more information, but we right now are following those pretty strictly. And we've got great flowcharts of how to deal with every situation that we can think of. So if we have a mom that we know is COVID positive or is a PUI, which is person under investigation, then after she delivers her baby, her baby will be separated from her at least initially while we are you know, evaluating the situation and the baby will either go to a newborn nursery or go to the NICU to be cared for. And we're trying to really go case by case, and use the science and use all the knowledge that we have and to do what's best for both mom and baby. And just for the family unit as a whole.
Host: So Dr. Beck is SVMC Healthcare for Women accepting new patients right now?
Dr. Beck: Yes, we are accepting new patients and they should just need to call our office to schedule an appointment with the, with the new guidelines that are temporarily, at least with the COVID-19, we are implementing tele-health now. So for some new patients we may say we'll do a video appointment with them to decide if they actually need to be seen in the office or not. But we are definitely accepting new patients.
Host: That's good to know that nothing's changed so far. So anything else doctor? We want to tell moms and dads to be about COVID-19 about the situation, what they can expect, the type of care, just anything else we need people to know today.
Dr. Beck: I have had a lot of patients asking is it safer for me to have my baby at home? Instead of going to the hospital? And I would tell them that no, it is not safer to have your baby at home of the hospital is still the safest place for you to have your baby. We have processes in place to keep everyone safe. All of our processes are there to keep patients safe, to keep staff safe, so to keep moms, babies safe. And I think that every population, everyone in the population needs to know is that we are following processes. We have the right resources and are doing the right and they do not need to be afraid of the hospital. And if they ever have any questions, absolutely call their doctor's office. I think the offices in Salinas are all up to speed and are well-informed and the physicians are well informed and can answer any of their questions. And the biggest thing that they can do is follow the guidelines, follow shelter in place and take those seriously. Be vigilant, but don't be panicked.
Host: Yeah, that seems to be the consistent message and it's a good one. And I really appreciate your time today and your advice and expertise. And amazing that the time that we're in right now, that people are actually, you know, moms to be considering you know, giving birth at home and that, you know, we have to remind people that hospitals are still a really safe place, and that's the best place to have your babies. And I think you've done that today. Great job. Thank you so much, doctor. To make an appointment at SVMC Healthcare for Women call 831-758-8223. And to learn more about Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System, visit svmh.com. We hope you found this podcast to be helpful and informative. I'm Scott Webb. Stay well and we'll talk again next time.
Scott Webb: Having a baby is a wonderful time for moms and dads to be. But having a baby during a global pandemic certainly raises questions and concerns here to help answer these questions is Dr. Rachel Beck. She's a practicing OB GYN and Chief of Staff at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital. This is Ask the Experts, a podcast from Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System. I'm Scott Webb. So Dr. Beck, thanks so much for joining me today. Got a lot to cover. Let's start here. Can the virus be transmitted to the fetus? Is it transmitted during birth? How does that work?
Dr. Beck: So far, the studies that have been done on pregnant patients have not shown any transmission of the virus to the fetus. So obviously it's limited data. This has not been around long enough for us to have, you know, hundreds and hundreds of deliveries. But the deliveries that we know about and most of the data's coming out of China has shown no vertical transmission. That means transmission from the mother to the baby. They have not found virus detected in the placental tissue or in the amniotic fluid. So those are good reports that we can give to moms. The risk obviously would be if a mother is infected with COVID after she delivers her child, you know, could she transmit the infection to her child post-delivery, just like she could transmit it to any other person in her household. And that's where we have to be careful.
Host: What a difficult thing to have to deal with. You know, the possibility of the mother being infected and then perhaps that most special of moments right in a parent's life is holding their baby for the first time and perhaps not being able to do that. That's just pretty heartbreaking to think of. And as you say, there's, there's just so much that's unknown right now, but at least we know, or we believe that the fetus is protected before they're born, which is good to know. So some hospitals in the country are not allowing partners in the room during birth, which is also a really special thing. I remember of course being in the room, you know, when both of my children were born and you know, incredible memories. So what about Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital? How are you guys handling that for now?
Dr. Beck: I agree. I think it's really important for a patient in labor to have a support person and we at Salinas Valley all are in agreement that that is an important person to have. So we are allowing one person to be in the labor and delivery room with the mom. We are limiting it to only one person. So there is a change in our visitor policy in that sense. You know, we used to say the mom could have one support person plus two other people in the room with her and we limiting it now just to one support person. But we think that that mom deserves a person to be there with her. And it is an important time. I mean it is a special time and it should be something that she shares with someone special in her life.
Host: Yeah, there's so much that is kind of abnormal about everything that is going on. But I can't imagine being a mom, you know, there to give birth and not having at least someone there with them. So I'm glad to know as I'm sure listeners are, that at least dad or someone can be there as a support person. You know, there's so many new studies coming out about the transmission and we spoke about that briefly. What advice are you giving expecting moms and dads right now about COVID-19 and, you know, just sort of what the expectations should be.
Dr. Beck: The good news is that what we know so far about the virus, it does not seem to affect pregnant women any worse than the non-pregnant population. So that's different from influenza where we know that if a pregnant woman is infected with influenza, her infection is often worse because of her pregnancy. So we are not seeing that with COVID. But having said that, that doesn't mean that they are protected either. So they are at risk just like everybody else. And so they should follow the same practices that everybody else is following, which is shelter in place, social distancing washing their hands being, you know, careful. Just like everybody else. To try and decrease that risk of transmission to them and their family.
Host: And of course I can remember when, you know, when my kids were newborns, all the things we need to do for COVID-19, most parents, you know, do all those things anyway. I was constantly washing my hands every time before, every time I picked up either one of my kids, I made sure to wash my hands before that, but especially good idea right now during COVID-19. And I didn't know that the, as you were explaining influenza, that it actually can be worse for pregnant moms. And glad to hear that that's not the case with COVID-19. So, I know this is a little bit outside, you know, your daily responsibilities, but if a baby is born with the virus or is infected soon after, what will that care consist of? Will the baby be isolated sent to the NICU? How are you guys planning on handling that?
Dr. Beck: So in our hospital, we are really following the guidelines that are set out by the CDC and the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine, SMFM and ACOG which is American College of OB GYN. And so those guidelines are changing as we learn more information, but we right now are following those pretty strictly. And we've got great flowcharts of how to deal with every situation that we can think of. So if we have a mom that we know is COVID positive or is a PUI, which is person under investigation, then after she delivers her baby, her baby will be separated from her at least initially while we are you know, evaluating the situation and the baby will either go to a newborn nursery or go to the NICU to be cared for. And we're trying to really go case by case, and use the science and use all the knowledge that we have and to do what's best for both mom and baby. And just for the family unit as a whole.
Host: So Dr. Beck is SVMC Healthcare for Women accepting new patients right now?
Dr. Beck: Yes, we are accepting new patients and they should just need to call our office to schedule an appointment with the, with the new guidelines that are temporarily, at least with the COVID-19, we are implementing tele-health now. So for some new patients we may say we'll do a video appointment with them to decide if they actually need to be seen in the office or not. But we are definitely accepting new patients.
Host: That's good to know that nothing's changed so far. So anything else doctor? We want to tell moms and dads to be about COVID-19 about the situation, what they can expect, the type of care, just anything else we need people to know today.
Dr. Beck: I have had a lot of patients asking is it safer for me to have my baby at home? Instead of going to the hospital? And I would tell them that no, it is not safer to have your baby at home of the hospital is still the safest place for you to have your baby. We have processes in place to keep everyone safe. All of our processes are there to keep patients safe, to keep staff safe, so to keep moms, babies safe. And I think that every population, everyone in the population needs to know is that we are following processes. We have the right resources and are doing the right and they do not need to be afraid of the hospital. And if they ever have any questions, absolutely call their doctor's office. I think the offices in Salinas are all up to speed and are well-informed and the physicians are well informed and can answer any of their questions. And the biggest thing that they can do is follow the guidelines, follow shelter in place and take those seriously. Be vigilant, but don't be panicked.
Host: Yeah, that seems to be the consistent message and it's a good one. And I really appreciate your time today and your advice and expertise. And amazing that the time that we're in right now, that people are actually, you know, moms to be considering you know, giving birth at home and that, you know, we have to remind people that hospitals are still a really safe place, and that's the best place to have your babies. And I think you've done that today. Great job. Thank you so much, doctor. To make an appointment at SVMC Healthcare for Women call 831-758-8223. And to learn more about Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System, visit svmh.com. We hope you found this podcast to be helpful and informative. I'm Scott Webb. Stay well and we'll talk again next time.