Research Information System
IRANIAN RED CRESCENT MEDICAL JOURNAL, vol.26, no.1, pp.1-6, 2024 (SCI-Expanded)
Background and Objectives: It is known that social support, especially the support given to mothers of premature babies, has a positive effect on maternal attachment. This study aims to compare the social support and the maternal attachment levels of mothers who had premature infants in NICU during the COVID-19 pandemic process and before.
Methods: This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted in the NICU of a university hospital in Istanbul between November 2020 and April 2021. The study sample consisted of 62 mothers who were randomly selected. Data were collected the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Maternal Attachment Inventory (MAI), and socio-demographic form.
Results: The MSPSS score of mothers (n = 43) was 98.65±8.36 before COVID-19, and the mean score of the mothers (n = 62) who had an infant in the NICU during the pandemic was 95.11±3.43 and this difference was significant (P = 0.003). The MAI scores of mothers were 54.91±7.91 in the pre-COVID-19 group and 45.53±8.53 in the COVID-19 group, and this difference was statistically significant (P < 0.001). MAI scores were found to be positively and significantly correlated with the MSPSS and perceived social support from the family.
Conclusion: The study revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the level of maternal attachment and was linked with social support. The study also suggested that mother-infant attachment during the COVID-19 outbreak was associated with perceived social support from family.