Determination of perceptions and attitudes towards the Covid-19 epidemic in pregnant women

This research is a descriptive study conducted to determine the perceptions and attitudes of pregnant women towards COVID-19. Research consists of 300 pregnant women who applied to the gynecology outpatient clinic of Çerkezköy Irmet Hospital between 17.11.2021 and 06.01.2022. A descriptive questionnaire prepared in line according to literature and the Assessment Scale of Perceptions and Attitudes towards the COVID-19 Outbreak were used. 39.7% of the pregnant women participating in the research are between ages of 26-30. While it was determined that 26% of the participants were affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, 42% resorted to health-seeking behavior by learning and applying preventive measures, 12.7% of them avoided health-seeking behavior. The mean score of the contagiousness sub-dimension of the participants' perception of illness was 4.04±0.75, and the mean score of the avoidance behavior sub-dimension of avoiding personal contact was 4.17±0.75, and it was found that belief in this context was high. It is important for nurses to educate pregnant women about the disease in terms of perceptions and attitudes. Counseling services suitable for pregnant women who are affected by the disease during pregnancy and have difficulty in coping with negative emotions play a major role. Key Words: COVID-19, epidemic, pregnancy, perception, attitude