Clinical Practice Guidelines for Physicians and Healthcare Teams in Safety-care of Pregnant Women Infected with COVID-19 until Delivery, Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Nopparat Rajathanee Hospital

Abstract

Background: In 2021 - 2022, a large number of pregnant women were infected with COVID-19. Pregnant women are considered as a high-risk group with a chance of developing severe symptoms when infected with COVID-19. Objectives: 1) To study doctors’ diagnostic guidelines for treatment and prevention in pregnant women infected with COVID-19 to keep them safe. 2) To study the problems of doctors and medical personnel’s diagnostic guidelines for treatment and prevention, to take care of pregnant women infected with COVID-19 to keep them safe. 3) To study doctors and medical personnel’s management guidelines to take care of pregnant women infected with COVID-19 until the time of delivery. Methods: Study information of pregnant women from medical records from 1^st January - 31^st December 2021, at Nopparat Rajathanee Hospital, together with data from semi-structured interviews of healthcare experts, analyzing statistics, frequencies, percentages, and content, were collected in order to obtain the result. Results: The diagnostic guidelines consisted of key symptoms, history of exposure, COVID-19 testing, and chest x-rays. In terms of treatment guidelines, it was indicated to classify patient types, and to prescribe medicine according to standards, via online channels or telephone communication to prevent the spread of virus. However, there were still problems in communication. Some pregnant women were foreigners, which caused inaccurate communication, leading to a lack of awareness and understanding of self-protection. Conclusion: The 6 principles for managing safety in pregnant women by doctors and health care teams are as follows: safety culture, teamwork, communication, risk management, improving personnel efficiency, as well as improving awareness and response to event.