A study of 114 pregnant women and mothers in Sedgwick County during the COVID-19 pandemic shows a majority of the women reported negative changes in mental health, such as increased stress, along with a decrease in employment and fiscal security.

The new research, which was recently published in Patient Education and Counseling, was completed by faculty and staff at the Center for Research for Infant Birth & Survival (CRIBS), along with the Department of Family & Community Medicine, the Department of Pediatrics and the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at KU School of Medicine-Wichita. Carolyn R. Ahlers-Schmidt, Ph.D., CRIBS director and Pediatrics research director at KU School of Medicine-Wichita, led the study.

"We wanted to understand how COVID-19 was impacting pregnant women and those caring for infants in order to best support them during the pandemic," Ahlers-Schmidt said.

An electronic survey was distributed in April and May to the pregnant women and mothers of infants less than 12 months old. Participants were ages 16-38, English-speaking and enrolled in the local community prenatal programs Baby Talk and Lifting Young Families Towards Excellence (LYFTE), which are managed by KU Wichita Pediatrics.

Among the study findings from the 114 who responded (a 51% response rate) were the following:

• 82.5% reported negative changes in mental status measures during the pandemic, such as stress, anxious thoughts and changes in sleep patterns.
• 100% made changes to try to protect themselves and their babies from COVID-19, including 99% reporting frequent handwashing or use of sanitizer and reducing the amount of time in places with more than 10 people.
• Unemployment increased from 39% to 60% among the women, and those reporting they were struggling to keep up with the cost of living nearly doubled from 26% to 50%.
• 24% reported they lost social support because of COVID-19.
• Despite the negative impacts of COVID-19, participants were able to describe self-care strategies, such as focusing on things they can control, daily physical activity, cleaning and organizing, and meditation. Some also mentioned limiting exposure to the news as a way to limit stress.

The research provides initial insight into the knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of perinatal women during the pandemic.

"Understanding the experiences of pregnant women and new families during the COVID-19 pandemic is critical so that we can effectively support them in achieving healthy birth outcomes and safe infant care," Ahlers-Schmidt said. "We were excited to see the norm is to follow risk reduction guidelines, like social distancing, but were also concerned by the decrease in social support.

"As a community, we need to find safe ways to fill this gap and support these families."