Parents’ perspectives of discharge information and support for their newborn baby during COVID-19: a cross-sectional survey

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to ascertain parents’ experiences of being at home with their newborn baby in the first six weeks after birth during the first lockdown of the COVID19 pandemic, as little was known at the time about parenting in a pandemic.
METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in three rural English counties, with N=4525 births during March-June 2019. Participants, parents of newborn babies who had been discharged from a maternity unit or had a home birth during the COVID-19 pandemic, were recruited through social media. Descriptive statistical, deductive thematic and content analysis was undertaken. STROBE reporting guidelines were adhered to.
RESULTS: Participants (N=371) were predominantly mothers (n=369, 99.4%), aged between 25-34 (n=252, 67.8%), fit and healthy (n=314, 85%), white British (n=351, 94,5%) on maternity leave (n=252, 67.9%) and for half of the participants this was their first baby (n=186, 50.1%). Three salient themes included the impact of ‘no partner’ restrictions, mixed emotions and lack of information and support. The third is reported in this paper within three sub-themes: lack of information (antenatally and postnatally), lack of professional support and lack of social support (which linked to the impact of ‘no partner’ restrictions). Pandemic parenting experiences were mainly reported negatively, some positive outcomes were identified. Parents navigated their postnatal journey without the anticipated support from professionals and their normal social support networks, relying on information from online sources and social media.
DISCUSSION: Three key implications should be considered by policymakers (1) careful reflection about the impact that service redesign had on the delivery of safe, evidence based perinatal healthcare services (2) develop evidence based pandemic guidance, including: disease transmission during a pandemic and the importance of, and tips to support, breastfeeding (3) recovery plans must focus on support for maternal and infant long term physical and mental health.