A petition with more than 52,000 signatures has called for all maternity hospitals to allow partners to attend appointments and scans, as well as for the full duration of labour.
The petition was handed into Cork University Maternity Hospital this morning and will be delivered to all maternity hospitals in the coming weeks.
It also calls for partners to be allowed to visit the hospital for the duration of the stay at the hospital. Speaking as the petition was handed in, the director of the community campaign group Uplift said being pregnant is a momentous occasion in anyone's life.
Siobhan O'Donoghue said while it can be full of joy, it can also be full of stress trauma and sadness. She said they believe that couples should be classified as