PUB - Publikationen an der Universität Bielefeld

PROBLEM: Restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic compromised maternal and newborn care.; BACKGROUND: Countries in the German speaking area share several clinical care guidelines but differed significantly in the strictness of COVID-19 protective measures.; AIM: To investigate the quality of maternal and newborn care (QMNC) during the COVID-19 pandemic in the German-speaking area and explore associations between the reorganisational changes due to COVID-19 and QMNC, as described with WHO Standards-based Quality Measures.; METHODS: As part of the IMAgiNE EURO study (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04847336), we conducted an online survey on the QMNC in the German-speaking area, including women who gave birth in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. Descriptive statistics, Spearman rank correlation coefficient and multivariable quantile regression were used.; FINDINGS: Out of a total of 70,721 women accessing the online questionnaire, 1,875 were included (Germany: n = 1,053, Switzerland: n = 494, Austria: n = 328). Significant differences across countries were found in Quality Measures. In Switzerland, women scored Quality Measures more favourable than in Germany and Austria in all four sub-indexes of QMNC. In Austria, Quality Measures gaps in the sub-index 'Experience of care' were higher. The sub-index 'Reorganisational changes due to COVID-19' correlated weakly to strongly with the other sub-indexes (between r = 0.33 and r = 0.62, p < 0.001 for all correlations).; DISCUSSION: Midwives and other health professional should pay particular attention to the provision of respectful, high-quality care.; CONCLUSION: To effectively improve QMNC, further research is essential to monitor the quality of care and develop targeted interventions beyond the COVID-19 pandemic addressing inherent challenges in the organisation and delivery of care. Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.