Parental experiences with changes in maternity care during the Covid-19 pandemic: A mixed-studies systematic review.
Joan Gabrielle Lalor, Greg Sheaf, Andrea Mulligan and 5 others
PMID 35973917WHAT IT FOUND
Parents described distress from unclear, changing maternity rules, restricted partners, masks and reduced in-person care.
Many still accepted some changes, but communication, partner presence and postnatal support were central to feeling safe.
Key findings
01Changing, unclear and inconsistent information about maternity restrictions caused confusion, uncertainty and anxiety among mothers, and fathers were also unsure about supporting their partners.
02Restricting or removing the support person was a major concern, and mothers without a birth partner reported lower birth satisfaction.
03Parents reported that virtual maternity care was often inadequate for practical teaching and breastfeeding support.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
No review protocol was registered. Only English-language studies were included, which may bias the findings toward English-speaking countries and health systems. Most included studies were from high-income countries, so the findings may not apply to low- and middle-income settings. Some quantitative studies had sampling problems or a higher risk of nonresponse bias. The included studies varied too much for statistical pooling, so the review describes themes rather than measuring the effect of any specific policy. The review reports parents' experiences and perceptions, not clinical outcomes from a controlled comparison of maternity care options. Qualitative findings may overrepresent negative experiences because parents were often asked to discuss problems.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that any single maternity policy caused poor birth outcomes. It summarises parents' experiences across many different services and countries, and most included studies did not compare one restriction against another.