Partners visiting Tameside Hospital maternity appointments reintroduced

Tameside Hospital has reintroduced visiting for all antenatal contacts including scans, community, antenatal and triage appointments. 

The changes come into effect from Monday (14 December). 

Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the Ashton-based hospital, says it follows an "ongoing review of its visiting policy" and is in line with "meeting the expectations of our service users, the Maternity Voices Partnership and national requirements". 

All visitors must comply with coronavirus measures in place - such as social distancing and wearing face coverings - and must not attend the hospital if they have confirmed coronavirus, symptoms of coronavirus or are self-isolating in line with government guidance. 

One birth partner is now allowed but if they accompany their partner to an appointment, they must wait outside the main entrance closest to where their appointment is being held until they are called in. 

Birth partners will also be able to attend all antenatal scans, however, this will continue to be for the last five minutes of the scan. It will be facilitated on the day by allocated staff members.

Visiting on Ward 27 will also be reintroduced under the following guidance:

• Women attending for induction of labour are able to have their birth partner to support them if they are in a side room from 10am-8pm (one allocated birth partner)

Postnatal and antenatal visiting will be split into two time slots: 10am-11am, and 6pm-7pm. 

The time slot will be allocated to their birth partner as the woman is transferred to the ward post birth.