Provider-Patient Strategic Communication Among Women Pregnant During the COVID-19 Pandemic

ABSTRACT

When COVID-19 spread rapidly across the globe, it sparked a great deal of uncertainty. This was particularly true for expectant parents, who were already navigating increased uncertainty. Extant research demonstrates the important role prenatal healthcare workers play in helping expectant mothers navigate pregnancy. This study presupposes that obstetricians would serve as an important resource for expectant mothers as the pandemic began. Twenty pregnant women were interviewed in July and August of 2020 about their experiences navigating pregnancy amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings illustrate the magnitude of their uncertainty, and the role obstetricians played in their search for information about pregnancy and delivery in the time of COVID-19.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• pregnancy
• risk communication
• uncertainty

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Deborah Sellnow-Richmond

Dr. Sellnow-Richmond is associate professor of applied communication studies at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She has a PhD in communication from Wayne State University. She researches strategic communication in organizational and health contexts, with an emphasis in mega-crises. She serves as director of the graduate program in applied communication studies at SIUE.

Sagarika Shrestha

Sagarika Shrestha holds an MA in applied communication studies from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She has a background in media and journalism, having worked as a program presenter for Kantipur TV HD and Radio Kantipur.