NEWS
COVID-19 infection in pregnancy not linked with still birth or baby death
COVID-19 infection in pregnancy is not associated with stillbirth or early neonatal death, according to a new study. However the research, from over 4,000 pregnant women with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, also found women who had a positive test were more likely to have a premature birth. The research, led by scientists from Imperial
College London and published in the journal Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology, used data from the UK and the US. The study team looked at data from 4,004 pregnant women who had suspected or confirmed COVID-19. Of these women, 1,606 were from the UK, from a data registry called PAN-COVID, while 2,398 were from the US, from the American Academy of Pediatrics SONPM data registry. PAN-COVID was funded by the Medical
Research Council, UK National Institute for Health Research and the NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre. All the women gave birth between January-August 2020. The research found that no babies died from COVID-19 in the study. There was also no increase in risk of stillbirth or low birth weight. However, both the UK and US data suggested a higher risk of pre-term birth (defined as birth before 37 weeks). In the UK data, 12% of women with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 had a pre- term delivery – 60% higher than the national average rate of 7.5%. In the US data, 15.7% of women had a pre-term birth, 57% higher than the US national average of 10%. The study team say part of this association may be due to doctors deciding to deliver the baby early due to concerns about the effect of COVID-19 infection on
mother and baby. The rate of spontaneous pre-term birth was lower than expected. Professor Christoph Lees, senior author of the study from Imperial’s Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, said: “The finding that COVID-19 infection does not increase the risk of stillbirth or baby death is reassuring. However, a suspected or confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis was linked to a higher risk of preterm birth, and it isn’t entirely clear why.” Dr. Ed Mullins, co-author from Imperial’s
Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, added: “This study supports the prioritisation of vaccination for women who are pregnant or who plan to become pregnant, and existing measures that protect women in pregnancy from infection, in order to reduce pre-term birth.” The proportion of babies born to mothers with confirmed COVID-19, and who subsequently tested positive for the SARS- CoV-2 virus (which causes COVID-19) was 2% in the UK study, and 1.8% in the US study. The majority of women in the study had no pre-existing conditions, such as diabetes, or a respiratory condition, such as asthma.
In the UK study eight of the women died, while four women died in the US study. The study team say that although these death rates are higher than expected for women giving birth, they are similar to the expected death rates seen among adults with a confirmed COVID-19 infection. This suggests that women in pregnancy are not at a higher risk of death from COVID-19 than non- pregnant women.
The Operating
Theatres Show 2021 The Institute of Government & Public Policy will be hosting The Operating Theatres Show 2021 at The University of East London in October of this year. The national show will explore the key issues that operating theatres are currently facing, and how to tackle them head on. According to NHS Improvement, over 291,000 more routine operations could be carried out per year by improving the scheduling of surgical lists. Variation in theatre productivity between different Trusts and different specialties was demonstrated as a contributing factor, including late starts, early finishes, and delays between operations.
The Operating Theatres Show 2021 will
address key strategies for reducing waiting times in operating theatres, improving safety and outcomes of surgical services, and achieving greater productivity and capacity.
The event will look at the future of
surgery and how innovation in technology will drive significant improvements. Through case study examples, it aims to illustrate how teams have transformed their practice and high-level keynotes will give the latest overview of policy developments. Delegates will hear from surgeons and senior representatives from the NHS, Royal College of Surgeons, The Association for Perioperative Practice, University Hospitals, and more. Find out more about the event and secure your place with a CSJ reader discount using the code CSJ20 at the checkout
www.igpp.org.uk/csj
RCP calls for urgent measures to protect medical workforce
The COVID-19 pandemic has placed huge demands on global health systems which is testing healthcare workers to the limits of their professional competence and taking a toll on their health, the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has warned. Writing in The Lancet, RCP leaders called for more support to protect clinicians from harm. Professor Andrew Goddard, president of the RCP and Dr. Mumtaz Patel, Vice President RCP Global, reported that more than 300,000 healthcare workers have been infected with COVID-19 in 79 countries. Over 7,000 have died and many more have suffered as a result of stress, burnout, and moral injury.
They commented that there is an urgent need for more comprehensive system-level
acknowledgement and a new approach to address the issues that COVID-19 has created to better protect and safeguard the medical workforce for the future. In a recent RCP survey, half of the UK’s doctors (49%) reported not getting enough sleep and 63% said there had been no discussion in their organisation about timetabled time off to recuperate. The RCP believes that staff must be given time off to rest and recover from the pressure of the pandemic, so they are ready to face the next challenge of tackling the pent-up demand of non-COVID-19 care.
The Government recently announced the launch of 40 new mental health hubs for healthcare staff traumatised by COVID-19. The RCP welcomed this but said that wider
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organisational interventions also need to be considered when looking after physicians’ wellbeing.
This should include providing flexible working arrangements, enhanced teamwork, reductions in administrative burdens, and optimal use of technology. Hospital regulators such as the CQC should also consider being even more mindful when measuring the ‘safety and wellbeing’ of staff in light of the pandemic, the RCP advised. “Physicians’ wellbeing must be better recognised as a care quality indicator for all health systems. Improving the working lives of clinicians can optimise the performance of health systems, improve patient experience, drive population health, and reduce costs,” Professor Goddard and Dr. Patel wrote.
APRIL 2021
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