JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — "I work around a lot of people," Kimberly said on our Facebook group, Facts Not Fear. She's due in July. She and her husband are super excited about their baby boy. She says they want to do everything possible to keep their baby healthy.
But she's worried. She heard how some pregnant women hospitalized with COVID-19 can face complications, such as pre-term labor and preeclampsia.
Any severe respiratory issue -- even from flu or pneumonia -- can cause complications, according to OB/GYN Dr. Jennifer Porter with Faben Obstetrics and Gynecology in Jacksonville. But she says, "It's a scary time." That's because of the nature of COVID-19.
Jacksonville OB/GYN Dr. Tiffany Wells says, "What is concerning is just how contagious it is and the fact is we haven't been able to predict who's going to be severe and who's going to be mild."
So for pregnant women still working, Dr. Wells says you can do what she does when she gets home.
Here's her routine after work:
- "I actually park in my garage and strip down ... very carefully " taking her clothes off very slowly, she says.
- Then she uses an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to clean her hands.
- Then she basically assigns one hand as "the dirty hand" and the other as "the clean hand."
- She makes sure she carries her clothes and other items in only with the dirty hand. She does not touch the door handles with the dirty hand.
- Then she walks straight to the washer and puts her clothes in there.
- Then she washes her hands in there.
- She goes directly to the shower. "I don't touch anything. I don't sit down," she says.
Both doctors also urge pregnant women to stay home. Try to even avoid shopping. Have someone else go for you.