Explaining the experience of prenatal care and investigating the association between psychological factors with self-care in pregnant women during COVID-19 pandemic: a mixed method study protocol

Abstract

Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a novel global public health emergency. Prenatal care (PNC) providing institutes should identify the needs and demands of pregnant women by optimizing the means of PNC services during the COVID-19 pandemic. The present study aims to: a) explain prenatal care experiences; b) assess the factors affecting self-care, and c) present a prenatal care guideline and Strategies to improve the PNC. Methods This mixed-methods study with a sequential explanatory design consists of three phases. The first phase is a qualitative study exploring the prenatal care experiences among pregnant women. In this phase, the subjects will be selected through purposive sampling; moreover, in-depth individual interviewing will be used for data collection. Finally, the conventional content analysis approach will be employed for data analysis. The second phase is quantitative and will be used as a cross-sectional approach for assessing the association between psychological factors of self-care. In this regard, a multistage cluster sampling method will be used to select 215 subjects who will be visited in health care centers of Tabriz, Iran. The third phase will be focusing on developing a prenatal care guideline and Strategies, using the qualitative and quantitative results of the previous phases, a review of the related literature, and the nominal group technique will be performed among experts. Discussion The present research is the first study to investigate the prenatal care experiences and factors influencing self-care among pregnant women during COVID-19 pandemic. For the purposes of the study, a mixed-methods approach will be used which aims to develop strategies for improving health care services. It is hoped that the strategy proposed in the current study could lead to improvements in this regard. Ethical code IR.TBZMED.REC.1399.003.

Psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pregnant women in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia

“…Such results were expected in light of both the severity of the crisis caused by the pandemic, and the psychological vulnerability of pregnant women in general. They are also in line with the findings of other authors who identified higher levels of stress in pregnant women across the world (Berthelot et al, 2020, Corbett et al, 2020, Durankuş & Aksu, 2020, Kotabagi et al, 2020, Lebel et al, 2020, Masjoudi et al, 2020, Nanjundaswamy et al, 2020, Saadati et al, 2020, Saccone et al, 2020. Our study suggests that the intensity of fear of COVID-19 directly affects the stress response, but that there are also several psychological factors modulating this relationship.…”

“…Several empirical studies and preliminary reports dealing with the psychological consequences of the pandemic on pregnant women have been published (Berthelot et al, 2020, Corbett et al, 2020, Durankuş & Aksu, 2020, Kotabagi et al, 2020, Lebel et al, 2020, Masjoudi et al, 2020, Milne et al, 2020, Nanjundaswamy et al, 2020, Saadati et al, 2020, Saccone et al, 2020, all pointing to the same conclusion that pregnant women experience significantly higher levels of stress and anxiety during the pandemic. The perceived levels of distress and psychiatric symptoms among pregnant women in Quebec were higher than before the pandemic, after controlling for age, gestational age, household income, education, and lifetime psychiatric disorders (Berthelot, 2020).…”

Pregnant women’s knowledge, perceived severity, and perceived controllability of the COVID-19 and their associations with emotional and behavioral reactions: A cross-sectional study

“…According to reports, emotional reactions, such as stress and anxiety, have increased in people from all walks of society, especially the high-risk groups [9]. Moreover, the implementation of quarantine measures and fear of getting infected with coronavirus has discouraged people from referring to health centers [10]. The novelty of coronavirus has prompted people to search for information on different news channels; consequently, all the aforementioned issues can affect self-care behaviors [11,12].…”

“…Moreover, they may show different responses in order to achieve the desired pregnancy and fetal health outcomes [14]. It is an agreed-upon fact that performing self-care behaviors can help achieve favorable pregnancy outcomes [10]. Nevertheless, based on related studies, the adoption of self-care behaviors can be affected by various factors.…”

Atenção à Saúde da Mulher no Pré-Natal e Puerpério em tempos de COVID-19: uma revisão descritiva

“…Para se adaptar a essa realidade, novas medidas, recomendações e protocolos foram criados para modificar aqueles utilizados anteriormente, mantendo sempre as consultas de pré-natal e pós-parto, já que as mesmas são indispensáveis. Essas modificações devem ser criadas com base nos medos e demandas das mulheres grávidas afim de otimizar os serviços de saúde fornecendo segurança e bem-estar para essas mulheres, garantindo que as mesmas acessem os cuidados de saúde da mulher com risco mínimo de exposição (Masjoudi et al, 2020).…”