A fifth of critically ill covid patients are unvaccinated pregnant women

Claire Bromley, an unvaccinated pregnant woman, spent almost a month in the hospital altogether, and two weeks in the ICU on a ventilator after contracting Covid-19. Bromley was at risk of undergoing an emergency C-section several weeks before she was due because she was placed in a medically induced coma.

Although initially hesitant, Bromley was planning on getting the vaccine at the advice of her midwife, but unfortunately contracted the virus just before her vaccination appointment. “It’s traumatic and the truth is, my husband was possibly going to lose both of us, or he’s going to be a single dad, and that’s the truth of it really, so I wouldn’t wish that on anyone,” she told ITV News. Bromley now urges pregnant women to consider vaccination, as the risk of contracting severe Covid-19 symptoms can be extremely dangerous.

Bromley is recovering now and she and her unborn baby are doing well, however she still suffers from PTSD from this traumatic experience.

Kelsie Routs, a 23 year old pregnant woman also contracted Covid-19 and was hospitalized with severe symptoms. Her baby was delivered prematurely via emergency C-section. After her son’s birth, she was placed in a medically induced coma, unable to bond with her son for several days.

At the age of 23 Routs believed she was not at risk for Covid-19 and was hesitant about long term effects of the vaccine. “Being 23 and not being in the vulnerable category, being one of the last ones (to be offered the vaccine).You don’t think you’re going to end up in a coma, with your baby premature,” she told ITV News.

Unfortunately, 1/5th of the recent hospitalizations in England were unvaccinated pregnant women. According to the NHS, between July 1st and September 30th, 17% of patients undergoing treatment for Covid-19 through a lung-bypass machine were unvaccinated pregnant women.

Furthermore, pregnant women made up 32% of all women from the ages of 16 and 49 in the ICU on an ECMO device, which is used when the lungs are so damaged that a normal ventilator will not support oxygen levels. England’s chief midwife, Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent, said the data is “another stark reminder that the Covid-19 jab can keep you, your baby and your loved ones safe and out of hospital”.

The NHS has stated that the 100,000 vaccinations given to pregnant women in England and Scotland as well as the 160,000 vaccinations given to pregnant women in the United States have been successful show no evidence of negative effects on the fetus.

As a safer pregnancy charity, MAMA Academy has launched it’s #MyWhy campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of not being vaccinated against covid-19 and to share reasons why other mothers have decided to be vaccinated.

Visit our #MyWhy page for the latest vaccination information and how to get involved.