‘Shining a light on the gaps for learning’

Banerjee, Anita; Mansfield, Amanda

doi:10.1016/j.midw.2020.102790

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…In times of pandemic, the need for rapid responses to ensure the continuity of maternal and newborn care justifies the search for concrete and practical solutions to avoid the spread of the virus through routine care performed by midwives. “Learning hour by hour” is a reality rarely experienced by Belgian midwives before the COVID-19 pandemic and strong leadership is needed to reassure the maternity teams and reduce occupational stress, as it has already been shown in the UK (28). Our rapid study allowed us to gain a deeper understanding of the experience of midwives during the first wave of COVID-19 in Belgium and to put this into the context of a profession which remains poorly recognised on a national level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How COVID-19 challenged care for women and their newborns: a qualitative case study of the experience of Belgian midwives during the first wave of the pandemic

Huysmans

Audet

Delvaux

et al. 2021

Preprint

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In this article, we describe the results of a rapid qualitative study conducted between May 19 and June 25, 2020 on the work experience of midwives during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brussels and Wallonia (Belgium). Using semi-structured interviews conducted with fifteen midwives working in hospitals or practicing privately, we investigated the impact of the first COVID-19 wave on their work experience, the woman-midwife relationship, and midwife-perceived changes in quality of care. Findings include high levels of stress and insecurity related to the lack of resources and personal protective equipment, feelings of distrust from midwives towards the Belgian State and public health authorities, as well as structural and organizational challenges within maternity wards which negatively affected quality of care. Moreover, based on the midwives' experiences, we demonstrate the need to recognise the views of all stakeholders involved in maternal and newborn care provision, and share five essential lessons learned from this study: 1) it is crucial to acknowledge the central role of midwives for maintaining maternal and newborn care amidst the pandemic and beyond; 2) creating unified national guidelines could support ensuring best practice; 3) efforts must be put in place to diminish the climate of mistrust towards health authorities and to repair the relationship between midwives and decision-makers which was damaged during the pandemic; 4) caring for front-line healthcare workers' mental health is critical, and 5) quality of maternal care can be improved, even in the midst of a pandemic, through team effort and creative solutions tailored to the needs and demands of each setting.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%