Women’s perceptions of COVID-19 and their healthcare experiences: a qualitative thematic analysis of a national survey of pregnant women in the United Kingdom

Karavadra, Babu; Stöckl, Andrea; Prosser-Snelling, Edward; Simpson, Paul; Morris, Edward

doi:10.1186/s12884-020-03283-2

Cited by 140 publications

(232 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…The media has been reported to play a significant part in perception of hospitals and ‘risk of death’ during the COVID-19 pandemic in women’s maternity care; a qualitative study evaluating perceived barriers to care for pregnant women found barriers present due to changes in the way services were delivered, virtual consultations and different perceived thresholds for seeking help. 18 Where caregivers had received adequate health education and signposting to decision-making tools antenatally, they felt empowered to seek help without delay.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘Do I, don’t I?’ A qualitative study addressing parental perceptions about seeking healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic

et al. 2021

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BackgroundPaediatric emergency departments have seen reduced attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Late paediatric presentations may lead to severe illness and even death. Maintaining provision of healthcare through a pandemic is essential. This qualitative study aims to identify changing care-seeking behaviours in child health during the pandemic and ascertain parental views around barriers to care.MethodsSemistructured interviews were conducted with caregivers of children accessing acute paediatric services in a hospital in North-West London. Thematic content analysis was used to derive themes from the data, using a deductive approach.ResultsFrom interviews with 15 caregivers an understanding was gained of care-seeking behaviours during the pandemic. Themes identified were; influencers of decision to seek care, experience of primary care, other perceived barriers, experiences of secondary care, advice to others following lived experience. Where delays in decision to seek care occurred this was influenced predominantly by fear, driven by community perception and experience and media portrayal. Delays in reaching care were focused on access to primary care and availability of services. Caregivers were happy with the quality of care received in secondary care and would advise friends to seek care without hesitation, not to allow fear to delay them.ConclusionA pandemic involving a novel virus is always a challenging prospect in terms of organisation of healthcare provision. This study has highlighted parental perspectives around access to care and care-seeking behaviours which can inform us how to better improve service functioning during such a pandemic and beyond into the recovery period.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘Do I, don’t I?’ A qualitative study addressing parental perceptions about seeking healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic

et al. 2021

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“…The uncertainty about the best treatment and clinical management of patients with COVID-19 may affect the mind and psyche of pregnant women, with implications for their health care experiences [ 25 ]. Depression and anxiety are associated, and both can occur due to the COVID-19 pandemic [ 26 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A high overall score indicates a high level of anxiety. Anxiety levels are defined according to the total score as follows: minimal anxiety (0-7), mild anxiety (8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15), moderate anxiety (16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25), and severe anxiety (26-63) [17]. A validated Brazilian Portuguese version of the BAI with adequate internal consistency (0.88-0.92) was used in this study [18,19].…”

Section: Questionnaires' Applicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Maternal Anxiety in Brazil

Nomura

Tavares

Ubinha

et al. 2021

JCM

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Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may have an effect on maternal anxiety and influence postpartum experience. Objective: To study the prevalence of maternal anxiety in late pregnancy in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak in Brazil and to analyze its association with maternal knowledge and concerns about the pandemic. Methods: This was a national multicenter cross-sectional study performed in 10 different public university hospitals, between 1 June and 31 August 2020, in Brazil. The inclusion criteria were: maternal age more than 18 years; gestational age more than 36 weeks at childbirth; single alive newborn without malformations; and absence of mental disorders. We applied a structured questionnaire to explore the knowledge and concerns about COVID-19. Maternal anxiety was assessed using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Results: Of the 1662 women interviewed, the BAI score in late pregnancy indicated that 13.9% presented moderate and 9.6% severe maternal anxiety. Moderate or severe maternal anxiety was independently associated with the fear of being unaccompanied at childbirth (aOR1.12, 95% CI 1.10–1.35), and independent protective factors were confidence in knowing how to protect oneself from COVID-19 (aOR0.89, 95% CI 0.82–0.97) and how to safely breastfeed (aOR0.89, 95% CI 0.83–0.95). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic has a significant impact on maternal anxiety.

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“…There have also been changes in the procedures for screening for fetal growth restriction and gestational diabetes [ 48 , 49 ]. In the UK women have expressed anxiety about the changes to antenatal and intrapartum services [ 50 ]. These changes were thought to be barriers to diagnosing maternal or fetal abnormalities, possibly contributing to a rise in adverse outcomes.…”

Section: Effect Of Covid-19 On Pregancy Outcomesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of the COVID pandemic on pregnancy outcomes

Elsaddig

Khalil

2021

Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecol

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Pregnant women and neonates are often categorised as being at high risk during the coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) pandemic. Numerous studies have demonstrated that the characteristics of COVID-19 disease in pregnant women and non-pregnant women are very similar. However, pregnant women with COVID-19 in the third trimester are more likely than their non-pregnant counterparts to require intensive care, though this may reflect a lower threshold for intervention in pregnant women rather than more serious disease. Compared with pregnant women without COVID-19, pregnant women with symptomatic COVID-19 requiring admission to hospital have worse maternal outcomes, including death, although the absolute risk remains very low. Outcomes of neonates born to women positive for COVID-19 are generally very good, though iatrogenic preterm birth is more common. Findings from these studies highlight the need for further monitoring of the outcomes of pregnant and post-partum women according to trimester during this pandemic.

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Women’s perceptions of COVID-19 and their healthcare experiences: a qualitative thematic analysis of a national survey of pregnant women in the United Kingdom

Cited by 140 publications

References 8 publications

‘Do I, don’t I?’ A qualitative study addressing parental perceptions about seeking healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic

‘Do I, don’t I?’ A qualitative study addressing parental perceptions about seeking healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Maternal Anxiety in Brazil

Effects of the COVID pandemic on pregnancy outcomes

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