Parents who gave birth, or experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth or neonatal death during the COVID-19 pandemic, are being asked to take part in a major new global study.

The COCOON Study is a comprehensive online survey, which seeks to better understand the psychosocial impact that the pandemic has had on parents' maternity care experiences.

It is being led by researchers at the Pregnancy Loss Research Group in the INFANT Research Centre in University College Cork (UCC). They are working in partnership with the Centre for Research Excellence in Stillbirth, Australia, as well as researchers from a number of other countries, including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, the US, Canada and Brazil.

Dr Keelin O'Donoghue is a consultant obstetrician and senior lecturer at Cork University Maternity Hospital (CUMH) and UCC. She is one of the coordinating investigators of the Irish arm of this survey and is an expert in the area of pregnancy loss and perinatal death.

"Pregnancy loss at any time is a difficult and painful experience. This is one of the few studies worldwide to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the experiences of bereaved parents after the end of a pregnancy or the death of a baby.

"We need to understand the new challenges and concerns of these parents to improve the care we offer in all our maternity units," she commented.

The survey is open to both mothers and fathers and takes around 25 minutes to complete. Any parents who would like to take part can access it here.

For more information on the INFANT Research Centre in UCC, click here.