China’s big baby bump puts the squeeze on hospitals and pregnant women
Relaxation of the one-child policy is increasing competition for delivery spots in the country’s major cities
Jane Liang sits in the packed and noisy waiting hall of the Beijing Women and Children’s Hospital but the din doesn’t annoy her. Instead, she feels extremely lucky.
The 29-year-old accountant will be one of a select group to give birth at the centre when her time comes.
She secured the position when she thought she was eight weeks pregnant; others were already too late when they applied at six weeks.
My husband could not make an appointment even when he came to queue before 6am. Then we paid a scalper for an appointment
“My husband could not make an appointment even when he came to queue before 6am. Then we paid a scalper for an appointment. Luck struck again when the ultrasound scan showed my baby was only six weeks old,” Liang said.
The doctor then booked her a bed in the month after the estimated due date because all the delivery rooms for women at her stage of pregnancy had already been snapped up.
The scarcity of beds is in sharp contrast to just a few years ago when a pregnant woman could book at bed after 12 weeks.
While demographers still assess the effects on population from the full relaxation of the one-child policy announced last year, pregnant women are feeling the squeeze.