Utilization of Communication Technology in Midwifery Services During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic, the industrial revolution 4.0 and society 5.0 are phenomena of revolutionary, fast, fundamental social change, which are associated with global challenges. One of the aspects affected by these social changes is midwifery services. Solutions to deal with these challenges include innovating and integrating communication technology into midwifery services. This study aimed to determine how communication technology has been used in midwifery services during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a descriptive study. 35 midwives, recruited through purposive sampling, participated. Data were collected using a closed-ended online questionnaire, through the Google forms platform. The results showed that 51.4% of respondents had used communication technology in antenatal care services, 62.8% had used communication technology in postnatal care services, and 60.0% needed applicationbased communication technology. We can conclude that most respondents had used technology and needed application-based communication technology which could be applied in midwifery services effectively, efficiently and at low cost. These findings are expected to be used as a reference in the development of integrated midwifery services. Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, midwifery services, communication technology