With all the ‘uproar’ over the number of newborns delivered by ambulance crew, Portugal ‘celebrates’ its first ‘street birth’: a woman with a high risk pregnancy (due to having only one kidney) who called the 24-hour helpline, and was told to travel by car to the nearest available maternity unit. The baby could not wait, and was delivered with the help of family on the pavement in Carregedo (Alenquer municipality).
Understandably, the family of 28-year-old new mother Soraia are ‘disgusted’.
Grandmother Isabel Moreira has told tabloid Correio da Manhã that it was just ‘lucky’ that the birth went so well.
“Just as our granddaughter made her appearance, a woman appeared in the street who used to be a nurse, as well as a doctor who lives in the block of apartments nearby. It was they who helped us, but it was us, the grandparents, who brought our granddaughter into the world… I think it is unpardonable that situations like these are happening, all because the SNS state health service is in such chaos”.
CM writes that it has tried to get a statement from the SNS 24-hour helpline, and from the local Alenquer health centre, “but we did not get an answer in time to close this edition”.
Already this year, 48 babies have been born in ambulances racing to reach a maternity unit that remains open, and is willing to receive a new entry. But this appears to be the very first ‘street birth’, which saw local shopkeepers and residents rally to the challenge, bringing towels and cloths to the group delivering a newborn on the pavement.
Locals commenting over Facebook have revealed that even when ‘authorities’ reached the scene, the ambulance had a flat tyre, and had to wait for a second ambulance to carry mother and baby (finally) to a hospital.
“What a disgrace. This country is getting worse and worse”, wrote one.
It may be that this truly abysmal event will finally prompt the minister of health to resign (as so many quarters have been demanding for weeks, if not months). This afternoon the minister announced that she has asked IGAS (the general inspectorate of health activities) to open an inquiry into this incident.
Source: Correio da Manhã/ Facebook
