Search

Objective: To assess the perspectives and health anxieties of gynecological and obstetric patients during COVID19 pandemic. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted in emergency and outpatient clinics of Gynecology and Obstetrics department Combined Military Hospital Rawalpindi, Pakistan from April to May 2020. Methodology: Two hundred and thirty patients participated in this study by answering a pre-designed questionnaire. All the patients were interviewed by the same doctor to minimize bias. Eleven questions were asked exploring their perspectives and anxieties regarding Novel COVID-19 pandemic, its effects on their healthcare and the challenges faced by the healthcare providers. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 33 ± 5.2 years. One hundred and sixty four (71.3%) were obstetric and 66 (34.8%) were gynecological patients. Undergraduate, postgraduate, and healthcare professionals were 78 (33.9%), 134 (58.3%) and 18 (7.8%) respectively. Two hundred and fourteen (93.03%) participants were aware of risk of COVID-19 pandemic and 140 (60.8%) knew about its adverse effects. One hundred and forty (62.5%) visited for regular antenatal. According to 196 (85.2%) had a good opinion about the attitude of the doctors and 216 (93.9%) were satisfied with their treatment. 186 (80.8%) had no apprehensions about the health workers protective gear but did consider hospital environment hazardous. Two hundred and six (89.5%) were not interested in revisiting the hospital again and 180 (78.2%) would not recommend it to their friends. Conclusion: Gynecological and obstetric patients have different opinion about risk, safety measurements, environmental condition, stress, and attitude of doctors during COVID-19 pandemic according to age and educational status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]