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Quality of maternal and newborn care in Switzerland during the COVID-19 pandemic : A cross-sectional study based on WHO quality standards

de Labrusse, Claire ; Abderhalden-Zellweger, Alessia ; Mariani, Ilaria ; Pfund, Anouck ; Gemperle, Michael ; Grylka-Baeschlin, Susanne ; Mueller, Antonia N. ; Valente, Emanuelle Pessa ; Covi, Benedetta and Lazzerini, Marzia (2022) In International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 159(S1). p.70-84
Abstract

Objective: To explore quality of maternal and newborn care (QMNC) in healthcare facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland. Methods: Women giving birth in Switzerland answered a validated online questionnaire including 40 WHO standards-based quality measures. QMNC score was calculated according to linguistic region and mode of birth. Differences were assessed using logistic regression analysis adjusting for relevant variables. Results: A total of 1175 women were included in the analysis. Limitations in QMNC during the pandemic were reported by 328 (27.9%) women. Several quality measures, such as deficient communication (18.0%, n = 212), insufficient number of healthcare professionals (19.7%, n = 231), no information on the... (More)

Objective: To explore quality of maternal and newborn care (QMNC) in healthcare facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland. Methods: Women giving birth in Switzerland answered a validated online questionnaire including 40 WHO standards-based quality measures. QMNC score was calculated according to linguistic region and mode of birth. Differences were assessed using logistic regression analysis adjusting for relevant variables. Results: A total of 1175 women were included in the analysis. Limitations in QMNC during the pandemic were reported by 328 (27.9%) women. Several quality measures, such as deficient communication (18.0%, n = 212), insufficient number of healthcare professionals (19.7%, n = 231), no information on the newborn after cesarean (26.5%, n = 91) or maternal and newborn danger signs (34.1%, n = 401 and 41.4% n = 487, respectively) suggested preventable gaps in QMNC. Quality measures significantly differed by linguistic region and mode of birth. Multivariate analysis established a significantly lower QMNC for women in French- and Italian-speaking regions compared with the German-speaking region. Moreover, in several quality indicators reflecting communication with healthcare providers, women who did not answer the questionnaire in one of the Swiss national languages had significantly worse scores than others. A significant lower QMNC was also found for young and primiparous women and for those who experienced cesarean or instrumental vaginal birth. Conclusion: Women giving birth in Switzerland during the pandemic reported notable gaps in QMNC. Providers should be attuned to women who are younger, primiparous, and those who had an emergency cesarean or instrumental vaginal birth given the lower QMNC reported by these groups. Women who did not respond in a Swiss national language may need improved communication strategies.

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publication status
published
subject
keywords
COVID-19, IMAgiNE EURO, maternal health, maternity services, mode of birth, quality of care, Switzerland, WHO standards
in
International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics
volume
159
issue
S1
pages
70 - 84
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • pmid:36530005
  • scopus:85144443024
ISSN
0020-7292
DOI
10.1002/ijgo.14456
language
English
LU publication?
yes
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Funding Information: IMAgiNE EURO project was supported by the Ministry of Health, Rome ‐ Italy, in collaboration with the Institute for Maternal and Child Health IRCCS Burlo Garofolo, Trieste ‐ Italy. This study was supported by the School of Health Sciences (HESAV), HES‐SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland and the Research Institute for Midwifery, ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur. The IMAgiNE EURO study group would like to thank all the women who took the time to participate in the study. Special thanks to the IMAgiNE EURO study group for their contribution to the development of this project and support for this manuscript. Funding Information: IMAgiNE EURO project was supported by the Ministry of Health, Rome - Italy, in collaboration with the Institute for Maternal and Child Health IRCCS Burlo Garofolo, Trieste - Italy. This study was supported by the School of Health Sciences (HESAV), HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland and the Research Institute for Midwifery, ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur. The IMAgiNE EURO study group would like to thank all the women who took the time to participate in the study. Special thanks to the IMAgiNE EURO study group for their contribution to the development of this project and support for this manuscript. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Authors. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics.
id
f2c02b21-9a89-48fc-b4d0-018cc7f28c32
date added to LUP
2023-01-01 18:24:09
date last changed
2024-04-18 05:18:20
@article{f2c02b21-9a89-48fc-b4d0-018cc7f28c32,
  abstract     = {{<p>Objective: To explore quality of maternal and newborn care (QMNC) in healthcare facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland. Methods: Women giving birth in Switzerland answered a validated online questionnaire including 40 WHO standards-based quality measures. QMNC score was calculated according to linguistic region and mode of birth. Differences were assessed using logistic regression analysis adjusting for relevant variables. Results: A total of 1175 women were included in the analysis. Limitations in QMNC during the pandemic were reported by 328 (27.9%) women. Several quality measures, such as deficient communication (18.0%, n = 212), insufficient number of healthcare professionals (19.7%, n = 231), no information on the newborn after cesarean (26.5%, n = 91) or maternal and newborn danger signs (34.1%, n = 401 and 41.4% n = 487, respectively) suggested preventable gaps in QMNC. Quality measures significantly differed by linguistic region and mode of birth. Multivariate analysis established a significantly lower QMNC for women in French- and Italian-speaking regions compared with the German-speaking region. Moreover, in several quality indicators reflecting communication with healthcare providers, women who did not answer the questionnaire in one of the Swiss national languages had significantly worse scores than others. A significant lower QMNC was also found for young and primiparous women and for those who experienced cesarean or instrumental vaginal birth. Conclusion: Women giving birth in Switzerland during the pandemic reported notable gaps in QMNC. Providers should be attuned to women who are younger, primiparous, and those who had an emergency cesarean or instrumental vaginal birth given the lower QMNC reported by these groups. Women who did not respond in a Swiss national language may need improved communication strategies.</p>}},
  author       = {{de Labrusse, Claire and Abderhalden-Zellweger, Alessia and Mariani, Ilaria and Pfund, Anouck and Gemperle, Michael and Grylka-Baeschlin, Susanne and Mueller, Antonia N. and Valente, Emanuelle Pessa and Covi, Benedetta and Lazzerini, Marzia}},
  issn         = {{0020-7292}},
  keywords     = {{COVID-19; IMAgiNE EURO; maternal health; maternity services; mode of birth; quality of care; Switzerland; WHO standards}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{S1}},
  pages        = {{70--84}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics}},
  title        = {{Quality of maternal and newborn care in Switzerland during the COVID-19 pandemic : A cross-sectional study based on WHO quality standards}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ijgo.14456}},
  doi          = {{10.1002/ijgo.14456}},
  volume       = {{159}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}