Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic during pregnancy
The direct effects of the virus itself – and indirect effects related to individual and societal responses and public health measures – resulted in changes to the experience of pregnancy and childbirth for many women and their families.
Studies suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in both positive and negative experiences for mothers and their babies, noting that the same event may be experienced differently by different women.
In one Australian study, midwives and pregnant women reported that having fewer visitors in hospital, increased access to telehealth services, midwifery continuity of care models, home births and their partner working from home were positive benefits associated with the pandemic (Kluwgant et al. 2022).
Other research found that in the early stages of the pandemic, pregnant women experienced high levels of distress, which negatively impacted their mental health and led to pregnant women experiencing heightened depression, anxiety and stress (Frankham et al. 2023; Schweizer et al. 2023; Lequertier et al. 2022; Wilson et al. 2022). Distress and mental health impacts were related to changes to antenatal care and health services, not being able to have their chosen support people with them during care episodes, social distancing, and pandemic-related news exposure (Lequertier et al. 2022; Wilson et al. 2022).
The National Perinatal Data Collection (NPDC) began collecting data on mental health in 2020 for some jurisdictions; however, because data are not available prior to 2020 and the date of perinatal mental health screening is not collected, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal mental health cannot be examined using this collection.
Frankham LJ, Thorsteinsson EB and Bartik W (2023) ‘The impact of COVID-19 related distress on antenatal depression in Australia’, Int J Environ Res Public Health, 20(6): 4783, doi:10.3390/ijerph20064783.
Kluwgant D, Homer C and Dahlen H (2022) ‘Never let a good crisis go to waste: Positives from disrupted maternity care in Australia during COVID-19’, Midwifery, 110(2022):103340.
Lequertier B, McLean MA, Kildea S, King S, Keedle H, Gao Y, Boyle JA, Agho K and Dahlen HG (2022) ‘Perinatal depression in Australian women during the COVID-19 pandemic: The birth in the time of COVID-19 (BITTOC) study’, Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 19(9):5062, doi:10.3390/ijerph19095062.
Schweizer S, Andrews JL, Grunewald K and Kumle L (2023) ‘Association of antenatal COVID-19–related stress with postpartum maternal mental health and negative affectivity in infants’, JAMA Netw Open, 6(3):e232969, doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.2969
Wilson NW, Sweet L, Vasilevski V, Hauck Y, Wynter K, Kuliukas L, Szabo RA, Homer CSE and Bradfield Z (2022) ‘Australian women's experiences of receiving maternity care during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A cross‐sectional national survey’, Birth, 49(1): 30–39, doi:10.1111/birt.12569.