Department of Psychiatry and Epidemiology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Birth Defects Res. 2023 Dec 1;115(20):1912-1922. doi: 10.1002/bdr2.2262. Epub 2023 Oct 8.
The novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic exacerbated existing health inequities in the United States, but no studies have focused on the lived experiences of younger Black birthing people. The goal of this qualitative study was to center the experiences of younger pregnant and birthing Black and Biracial people during the pandemic.
We recruited 25 Black and Biracial pregnant and birthing people ages 16-23 for individual semi-structured interviews. Participants were asked about experiences with the healthcare system during the pandemic, and interviews were transcribed verbatim and coded for qualitative analysis using nVivo. We adhered to the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research guidelines.
Participants identified pandemic-related stressors such as fears about infection, lack of support, and pressure to get vaccinated. Reasons for vaccine hesitancy included mistrust in the government and racism experienced during reproductive healthcare. Provider appeals highlighting patient autonomy and science were more effective in encouraging vaccine uptake than emotional appeals that made participants feel guilty about potentially infecting loved ones.
Restrictions on children and support people created barriers to timely prenatal care and reduced tangible support for young Black and Biracial birthing people during the pandemic. Their vaccine hesitancy was related to mistrust, concerns that the vaccines had not been tested enough prior to roll-out, and possible side effects of the vaccine including infection with the virus and pregnancy loss. Obstetric providers need to understand and recognize the ongoing impact of obstetric and scientific racism on health communication with younger Black and Biracial patients.
2019 年新型冠状病毒（COVID-19）大流行加剧了美国现有的健康不平等现象，但尚无研究关注年轻的黑人产妇的生活经历。本定性研究的目的是关注大流行期间年轻的黑人及混血产妇的经历。
我们招募了 25 名年龄在 16-23 岁的黑人及混血孕妇和产妇进行个体半结构式访谈。参与者被问及在大流行期间的医疗保健系统的经历，访谈内容逐字转录并使用 nVivo 进行定性分析编码。我们遵守了定性研究报告的综合标准。
参与者确定了与大流行相关的压力源，如对感染的恐惧、缺乏支持以及接种疫苗的压力。疫苗犹豫的原因包括对政府的不信任和在生殖保健过程中经历的种族主义。强调患者自主权和科学的提供者呼吁比让参与者感到因潜在感染亲人而内疚的情感呼吁更能有效地鼓励接种疫苗。
对儿童和支持人员的限制在大流行期间为及时进行产前护理制造了障碍，并减少了对年轻的黑人及混血产妇的实际支持。他们对接种疫苗犹豫不决的原因与不信任、对疫苗在推出前没有经过足够测试的担忧以及疫苗可能的副作用有关，包括感染病毒和流产。产科医生需要了解并认识到产科和科学种族主义对与年轻的黑人及混血患者进行健康沟通的持续影响。
