Impact of Telehealth on Pregnant Women's Self-care, Self-efficacy, and Satisfaction during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Quasi-experimental Study

Pregnant women need correct information and skills for effective self-care and improved self-efficacy during pregnancy. Maternal training will raise women's awareness of pregnancy and childbirth, leading to higher self-efficacy.

The present study aimed to assess the impact of telehealth on pregnant women's self-care, self-efficacy, and satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This quasi-experimental study involvedlow-riskpregnant women selected fromprenatal public clinics in Ahvaz, Iran. Eligible pregnant women (n=150) were assigned to three groups:WhatsApp training (n=50), phone call training (n=50), andcontrol(n=50).Women in the three groups received four face-to-face prenatal care sessions based on the content recommended by the Iranian Ministry of Health. In addition to these four face-to-face sessions, four more virtual training sessions were held for the WhatsApp and phone callgroups.

Raising the awareness of pregnant women through telephone counseling was found to not only increase their self-efficacy, self-care, and satisfaction but also reduce the need for in-person visits during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, a moderate positive correlation was observed between self-efficacy and self-care scores; moreover, they have a relatively negative weak correlation with face-to-face visits.

The results of this study suggested that most pregnant women were satisfied with telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic, and thanks to this type of care provision, their self-efficacy and self-care levels were high. Reduced face-to-face visits during the pandemic are the main advantage of telehealth.