References

National Health Service UK. Chapter 5: Digitally-enabled care will go mainstream across the NHS. NHS long-term plan. 2019. https://www.longtermplan.nhs.uk/online-version/chapter-5-digitally-enabled-care-will-go-mainstream-across-the-nhs/ (accessed 26 June 2020)

National Health Service UK. Coronavirus (COVID19): Advice during pregnancy. 2020. https://www.nhs.uk/start4life/pregnancy/coronavirus-covid19-advice-during-pregnancy/ (accessed 26 June 2020)

National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence. Routine Antenatal Care for Healthy Pregnant Women. 2009. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg62/resources/routine-antenatal-care-for-healthy-pregnant-women-pdf-254938789573 (accessed 26 June 2020)

Pflugeisen BM, Mou J. Patient Satisfaction with Virtual Obstetric Care. Matern Child Health J. 2017; 21:(7)1544-51 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-017-2284-1

Poon LC, Yang H, Kapur A Global interim guidance on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) during pregnancy and puerperium from FIGO and allied partners: Information for healthcare professionals. Int J Gynecol Obstet. 2020; 149:(3)273-286 https://doi.org/10.1002/ijgo.13156

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Guidance for antenatal and postnatal services in the evolving coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. 2020. https://www.rcog.org.uk/globalassets/documents/guidelines/2020-03-30-guidance-for-antenatal-and-postnatal-services-in-the-evolving-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic-20200331.pdf (accessed 26 June 2020)

Van Den Heuvel JFM, Groenhof TK, Veerbeek JHW eHealth as the next-generation perinatal care: An overview of the literature. J Med Internet Res. 2018; 20:(6) https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.9262

Virtual antenatal clinics

02 September 2020
Comment
02 September 2020
Volume 28 · Issue 9

Abstract

In the current COVID-19 pandemic, a move towards virtual appointments has been vital. This article discusses the implementation of virtual antenatal clinics and the associated challenges

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in immense system pressures for maternity departments across the UK. Pregnant women were quickly recognised as a high-risk group who should be shielding (NHS UK, 2020; Poon et al, 2020), which posed a question around the delivery of routine antenatal care.

In the UK, antenatal care consists of between 7–10 appointments for a low-risk woman throughout her pregnancy, depending on if she is multipara or primipara (National Institute of Health and Care Excellent, 2009; Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, 2020).

For high-risk women, this can be double or triple that number of visits to hospital or to their community midwife. With increased specialisation of care, pregnant women may also attend numerous specialist clinics, depending on their risk stratification. They may also need ultrasound scans, blood tests, blood pressure checks or vaccinations. Therefore, the COVID-19 pandemic called for a rapid transformation to virtual antenatal clinics, which aligns with the NHS long-term plan to reduce face-to-face consultations by a third over the next three years (NHS UK, 2019). Virtual antenatal clinics have not been widely explored, but an American study reported high patient satisfaction compared to face-to-face consultations (Pflugeisen et al, 2017; van den Heuvel et al, 2018). In this article, the setting up of an operational virtual antenatal care service in a tertiary obstetric care centre is presented, and recommendations for maternity departments across the UK and beyond are discussed.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting British Journal of Midwifery and reading some of our peer-reviewed resources for midwives. To read more, please register today. You’ll enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included

  • Limited access to our clinical or professional articles

  • New content and clinical newsletter updates each month

Register
Or continue by

Signing in with your registered email address