Tips For Maintaining Health Of Pregnant Women Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

Officers administer the COVID-19 vaccine injection to pregnant women at the Kepanjenkidul Health Center, Blitar City, East Java, Wednesday (18/8/2021). Antara PHOTOS/Irfan Anshori/foc.

JAKARTA - Having a pregnancy in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic is the most beautiful gift as well as a challenge for Suci (27), a resident of South Purwokerto, Banyumas Regency, Central Java.

Various efforts to maintain health continue to be made for the sake of the child in the womb.

The woman, who works as a health worker, starts a clean and healthy lifestyle by eating a balanced nutritious diet as needed during pregnancy.

For the sake of the health of herself and the child in the womb, she always ensures that the intake is rich in macronutrients, such as carbohydrates, protein, fat, and micronutrients, including vitamins and minerals.

In addition to eating a balanced nutritious diet, she also regularly does safe exercise for pregnant women, one of which is by walking around the residential area where she lives.

Once a month she also conducts routine check-ups at health facilities to ensure the condition of the mother and baby in the womb is healthy. In fact, if there are complaints and the condition of the body is not optimal, she will also go directly to the nearest health facility to check everything.

In addition to these various efforts, she is also grateful that at this time he has received a complete COVID-19 vaccination, starting from the first dose to the third dose or booster.

For him, vaccination is a form of effort because, during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has not yet ended, vaccination is an effort to increase protection for individuals from the transmission of the coronavirus.

However, even though she has been vaccinated up to the third dose, she is still disciplined in implementing health protocols as another form of effort in an effort to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.

Wearing a mask, washing hands, keeping a distance, and staying away from crowds is an effort to remain disciplined in maintaining health protocols in preventing the transmission of COVID-19 during pregnancy.

With these various efforts, she hopes, the pregnancy period in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic will be able to pass well and run smoothly until the baby's awaited day of birth.

Optimal Protection

Obstetrician dr. Edy Priyanto, Sp.OG(K) said that pregnant women do need optimal protection in order to have a good pregnancy in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Therefore, he reminded pregnant women who have not received the vaccine to immediately get vaccinated, either the first dose, second dose, or third dose or booster.

Vaccination, according to him, will protect pregnant women, considering that pregnant women are one of the vulnerable groups, which is a priority for attention amid the program to accelerate the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Chair of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Study Program, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Jenderal Soedirman (Unsoed) Purwokerto added that pregnant women whose gestational age has entered 13 weeks are strongly advised to immediately get a COVID-19 vaccination.

To increase the coverage of COVID-19 vaccination for pregnant women, socialization and education to the public must continue to be improved. This is to increase awareness and understanding of the importance of vaccination, especially for vulnerable groups.

According to him, intensive education either through Integrated Healthcare Center (Posyandu), Public Health Center (Puskesmas), or other health facilities, equipped with socialization through social media will be more effective in increasing vaccination coverage for pregnant women.

Doctors who practice at RSUD Prof. Dr. Margono Soekarjo Purwokerto also reminded pregnant women to continue to maintain a clean and healthy lifestyle during pregnancy in the midst of the current pandemic.

He also advised pregnant women to continue to have their pregnancy and health conditions checked regularly at the nearest health facilities, of course, while still implementing health protocols to avoid possible exposure to COVID-19.

According to him, routine check-ups can be carried out at least six to eight times during pregnancy, but for emergency conditions, pregnant women need to immediately visit a health facility so that they can get immediate treatment.

He gave an example of complaints that lead to the emergency, among others, when there is bleeding from the birth canal, water comes out of the birth canal, and decreased fetal movement.

In essence, pregnant women must understand the condition of their pregnancy, so that when an emergency occurs, they can immediately act quickly to a health facility and get treatment.

Efforts to maintain pregnancy are really needed not only during pregnancy but also postpartum. This is very important, especially during a pandemic like this.

Meanwhile, field epidemiologist from Jenderal Sudirman University (Unsoed) dr. Yudhi Wibowo added that groups of pregnant women, the elderly, children, and those with comorbidities really need to get a complete dose of vaccination, including a booster or "booster" dose.

It aims to protect vulnerable groups from exposure to COVID-19 considering that vaccination is needed to reduce hospitalization rates and prevent illness with severe symptoms.

Therefore, he invited the public to play an active role in supporting the government in efforts to accelerate the COVID-19 vaccination program for the common good.

The narrative is indeed very appropriate, considering that vaccination and the application of health protocols are the main instruments that can support the acceleration of handling the pandemic.

Each individual has a responsibility to support the acceleration of handling the pandemic because COVID-19 is not just an individual clinical disease but also a communal disease, so the solution must be done together. This was reported by Antara, Wednesday, March 30.