Parents will be allowed back into the pediatric intensive care unit once all babies, staff, and the parents themselves have been swabbed and cleared, health sources have told The Malta Independent.
This newsroom was contacted by a couple who said they had not been allowed to see their infant son at Mater Dei's NPICU. The parents said they had been swabbed but were told, shortly afterwards, that they would still not be allowed inside. They said they had also asked to be allowed to see their son from behind a screen, or even via a video call, but their request was not accepted.
Sources from the health service explained that temporary measures were put in place after a one-month old baby this week tested positive for the Coronavirus. The child was being held at the NPICU but has now been placed in isolation.
The sources explained that the hospital is currently swabbing all babies, parents and staff in order to establish how the child got infected. The NPICU will be opened to parents again once the cause of transmission is established and after any required measures are taken to ensure that it is safe to do so.