Mumbai: Newborn, mother tests positive for coronavirus, family alleges infected through hospital bed
A newborn baby delivered at Sai Hospital in Mumbai has tested positive for the deadly COVID-19 virus on Wednesday. The newborn child is now the youngest COVID-19 patient recorded in Maharashtra - a coronavirus hotpot in India. The mother of three-day-old boy has been also tested coronavirus positive.
The family reportedly alleged hospital negligence and suspect the baby and the mother could have been infected through the bed that was allotted to them. They claimed they did not step out of their home for 10 days before coming to the hospital.
According to report, the newborn was delivered at the Chembur-based Sai Hospital on March 26, and the father had booked a twin sharing room to prevent exposure to the virus.
On Tuesday, the mother and son were shifted to Kurla Bhabha hospital and later to Kasturba Hospital.
“I was concerned about COVID-19. So, we booked an entire room. Two hours after delivery, the staff asked us to vacate the room and moved us to another bed. They did not tell us why. The next day, a doctor called and asked us to get tested for the virus,” the baby's father a restaurant manager, told The Indian Express.
He also added that the hospital had charged him extra for the delivery, as very few doctors were available to perform a caesarean surgery on his wife.
The family claimed since they had been admitted there, no paediatrician had visited the baby and the mother at Kasturba Hospital which is the nodal centre for COVID-19 cases in Mumbai.
“Since March 27, no nurse or doctor visited my wife and son at Sai hospital. They completely abandoned us,” the father said. On March 31, BMC asked the hospital to shut down.
“I am worried, he is our first born,” he added.
On Tuesday the mother and the baby were shifted to Kurla Bhabha hospital and later to Kasturba Hospital, which is currently treating over 120 COVID-19 patients.
Last week, a seven-month-old baby was tested positive for the novel coronavirus infection. The baby’s mother is said to have a travel history to Saudi Arabia.
Also Read: India's coronavirus cases surge to 1,834, death toll at 41
