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Acker K, Eagen-Torkko M, Riley LE, Saiman L. COVID-19 Infection, Prevention, and Control Considerations in the Obstetric Environment. Clin Obstet Gynecol 2022; 65:134-147. [PMID: 35045036 PMCID: PMC8767917 DOI: 10.1097/grf.0000000000000666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Pregnancy increases the risk of severe illness due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Thus, prevention of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission in all obstetrical health care settings requires consistent implementation of multiple evidence-based practices and consideration of local epidemiology, local regulations for COVID-19, and guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Professional Societies. COVID-safe practices should be implemented for patients, visitors/support persons, and health care personnel and include screening, appropriate personal protective equipment, and transmission precautions. Vaccination of all health care personnel, pregnant people, and their support persons remains the best strategy to prevent COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Acker
- Departments of Pediatrics
- Department of Infection Prevention and Control, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital
| | - Maria Eagen-Torkko
- Department of Infection Prevention and Control, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital
| | | | - Lisa Saiman
- Department of Infection Prevention and Control, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York
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Schmitt N, Mattern E, Cignacco E, Seliger G, König-Bachmann M, Striebich S, Ayerle GM. Effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on maternity staff in 2020 - a scoping review. BMC Health Serv Res 2021; 21:1364. [PMID: 34961510 PMCID: PMC8710925 DOI: 10.1186/s12913-021-07377-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
In the spring of 2020, the SARS-CoV-2 virus caused the Covid-19 pandemic, bringing with it drastic changes and challenges for health systems and medical staff. Among the affected were obstetricians and midwives, whose close physical contact with pregnant women, women who recently gave birth, and their children was indispensable. In the obstetric setting, births cannot be postponed, and maternity staff had to adapt to assure obstetric safety while balancing evidence-based standards with the new challenges posed by the pandemic. This scoping review gives a comprehensive overview of the effecs the Covid-19 pandemic had on maternity staff. We followed the evidence-based approach described by Arksey & O'Malley: we searched several databases for English and German articles published between January 2020 and January 2021 that discussed or touched upon the effects the pandemic had on maternity staff in OECD countries and China. We found that structural challenges caused by the crisis and its subjective effects on maternity staff fell into two main topic areas. Structural challenges (the first main topic) were divided into five subtopics: staff shortages and restructuring; personal protective equipment and tests; switching to virtual communication; handling women with a positive SARS-CoV-2 infection; and excluding accompanying persons. The pandemic also strongly affected the staff's mental health (the second main topic.) Attempting to meet challenges posed by the pandemic while afraid of contamination, suffering overwork and exhaustion, and struggling to resolve ethical-moral dilemmas had severe negative subjective effects. Several studies indicated increased depression, anxiety, stress levels, and risk of post-traumatic stress symptoms, although the crisis also generated strong occupational solidarity. Care for pregnant, birthing, and breast-feeding women cannot be interrupted, even during a pandemic crisis that requires social distancing. Maternity staff sometimes had to abandon normal standards of obstetric care and were confronted with enormous challenges and structural adjustments that did not leave them unscathed: their mental health suffered considerably. Researchers should study maternity staff's experiences during the pandemic to prepare recommendations that will protect staff during future epidemics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadine Schmitt
- Institute of Health and Nursing Science, Center for Health Sciences, Medical Faculty of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Straße 8, 06112, Halle, Saale, Germany.
| | - Elke Mattern
- Department of Applied Health Sciences, University of Applied Sciences Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Eva Cignacco
- Department of Health Professions, Bern University of Applied Sciences, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Gregor Seliger
- Department of Obstetrics and Prenatal Medicine, Center of Fetal Surgery, University Hospital Halle (Saale) and Center for Reproductive Medicine and Andrology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Saale, Halle, Germany
| | | | - Sabine Striebich
- Institute of Health and Nursing Science, Center for Health Sciences, Medical Faculty of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Straße 8, 06112, Halle, Saale, Germany
| | - Gertrud M Ayerle
- Institute of Health and Nursing Science, Center for Health Sciences, Medical Faculty of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Straße 8, 06112, Halle, Saale, Germany
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