Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still unfolding. Its several implications are visible, yet more of them we have to observe and witness in future. Dealing with these impacts, this rapid-response article aims to situate the COVID-19 pandemic within Pakistan's overall sociocultural and politico-economic context; next to investigate the impacts of COVID-19 particularly the psychological ones on pregnant women in Pakistan via five case. One case history of Haleema (pseudonym) revealed how the pandemic exerted a substantial amount of mental pressure due to “arranging someone to accompany her to the hospital, finding a blood donor for her, and insecurity of convenience to hospital.” In this article, we show that Pakistan's geographical division into urban with an appropriate healthcare system, infrastructure and economic status, and more impoverished rural areas may show different impacts on people in general and the pregnant women in particular. This difference of facilities may contribute to disease transmission in the more deprived areas, that also due to cultural norms and mores such as shaking hands, cheek-kissing, and hugging that spread the virus are being overturned and that pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to psychological effects of the pandemic.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still unfolding
We have to observe and witness its several implications in future, its significant marks are already visible currently. It struck us when we learnt about Haleema—a pregnant woman in her last trimester living in a small village of Sindh province of Pakistan—who was struggling to find a female accompaniment to stay with her in the hospital ward for at least one night after the cesarean section and striving for a blood donor during the current 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic
The literature is scanter in terms of its geographical focus. This is the first study that has explored the early impacts of the ongoing pandemic on pregnant women in Pakistan and investigated the socio-cultural factors that are likely to facilitate its spread
Summary
We have to observe and witness its several implications in future, its significant marks are already visible currently It struck us when we learnt about Haleema—a pregnant woman in her last trimester living in a small village of Sindh province of Pakistan—who was struggling to find a female accompaniment to stay with her in the hospital ward for at least one night after the cesarean section and striving for a blood donor during the current 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. Especially low-resource countries, suffer from socio-structural disparities and inequities due to a lack of economic resources and often cultural devaluation These disparities considerably affect their reproductive health during “normal” times [20], one can assume that the current challenging times can significantly affect pregnant women. The aims of this rapid-response article are 2-fold: [1] to situate the COVID-19 pandemic within Pakistan’s overall socio-cultural, political, and economic context; and [2] to investigate the impacts— psychological implications—of COVID-19 on pregnant women in Pakistan via five case studies
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