The pilot study to examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work of pregnancy advice centres and to systematically establish the changes to advice practice as well as the living circumstances and support needs of the pregnant women (with wanted and unwanted pregnancies) and their partners.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, and the associated, temporary contact and movement restrictions, access to essential services, products and information to do with sexual and reproductive health fundamentally changed. But what has the work in pregnancy advice and pregnancy conflict advice (German law § 2 and § 5 SchKG) as well as psychosocial and medical care in the context of abortions been like under the COVID-19 pandemic?
Which social or financial problems, specific support needs in the area social and health safeguarding and psychosocial support needs in general pregnancy advice and pregnancy conflict advice are particularly significant during the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic?
For the pilot study, professionals working at pregnancy advice centres in Bavaria, Berlin, Brandenburg and Lower Saxony have been surveyed.
The questions focused on:
- Experiences with the online advice setting and its impacts on the advice process
- Challenges and opportunities that were experienced
- Specific issues covered during sessions
- Target groups reached
- The psychosocial and medical care situation during the contact restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic
The study consists of a quantitative and a qualitative survey element. The quantitative online survey of professionals in Brandenburg, Berlin, Lower Saxony and Bavaria and subsequent qualitative telephone interviews capture the professionals’ experiences of their work (§2 and §5 SchKG) from their perspective.