Baby hatch in Graz

“All the children were always warm and well wrapped up”

The baby hatch at Graz University Hospital (reenacted scene with doll)(Bild: Jürgen Radspieler)

Violence, financial problems, psychological pressure: some women hide pregnancies. But there is help: In Styria, not only can you safely deposit a baby, but you can also take advantage of completely anonymous examinations and births. What motivates mothers in such emergency situations?

A hedge, certainly two and a half meters high, shields the wall of the obstetrics department from the street. Two steps lead up to the baby hatch, which is actually a drawer: if you pull it out, you can place your baby in a padded bed. At this moment, an alarm goes off in the delivery room. "We'll be there in less than a minute," says Petra Seibitz, head midwife.