|
|
| Pregnant Pause
February 9, 2016
I
ssue #56
|
|
Because there is no health without mental health!
|
NEW DEPRESSION SCREENING GUIDELINES FOR PREGNANT WOMEN AND NEW MOTHERS
|
|
The United States Preventive Services Task Force, through a government-appointed health panel, has recommended that women be screened for depression during pregnancy and following delivery. This is the first time a guideline for screening has been issued for maternal mental health.
Following new evidence that maternal mental illness is more common than anticipated and that long-term symptoms can have lasting implications on offspring, the recommendation will hopefully increase the number of
 healthcare providers that administer screening to women.
This recommendation also follows recent efforts to bolster maternal health care, including mental health care, for women who are pregnant and new mothers. The recommendation does not specify which clinicians should screen new mothers or how often, but endorses that clinicians should have the ability to provide women with diagnosis and treatment or appropriate referrals. The panel notes that increased screening and detection is critical for public health and maternal mental health care.
To learn more, click
here
.
|
|
|
#LoveAnotherMother: A National Day of Action
On February 11th, the National Coalition for Maternal Mental Health (NCMMH) is launching
a Day of Action to increase support for the federal bill "Bringing Postpartum Depression Out of the Shadows Act of 2015" (H.R. 3235 and S. 2311).
NCMMH promotes using the following social media posts to send messages to elected officials.
For the HOUSE:
#LoveAnotherMother
: @Rep'sTwitterHandleHere Support Moms and families! Cosponsor #HR3235! Bring #PPD Out of the Shadows b/c #MomsMatter
For the SENATE:
#LoveAnotherMother:
@Rep'sTwitterHandleHere Support Moms and families! Cosponsor S2311 ! Bring #PPD Out of the Shadows b/c #MomsMatter
NCMMH notes that families need community resources to screen, treat, and support mothers experiencing maternal mental health issues.
To find out more about this event, click here.
|
|
DID YOU KNOW?
Adoptive parents should be screened for depression too:
In response to the new depression screening guidelines for mothers during pregnancy and in the postpartum period, Karen J. Foli, an associate professor of nursing and co-author of "Post Adoption Blues: Overcoming the Unforeseen Challenges of Adoption," notes that adoptive mothers and fathers should be screened for depression before and following child placement since they also suffer from similar mental health challenges. Adoptive parents are less likely to reveal mental health concerns to providers due to the nature of the adoption process.
To read more, click here.
New Jersey already has screening guidelines in place for maternal mental illness: New Jersey has "aggressive" screening protocols in place that require providers to discuss postpartum depression with pregnant patients and to screen new mothers for signs of depression before leaving the hospital thanks to the work of former first lady Mary Jo Codey. The state reports that approximately 93% of new mothers who gave birth in hospitals in 2014 were reached; however it does not have data on follow-up screening during the baby's first check-up weeks later. To learn more about this policy, follow this link .
Postpartum depression affects parenting behaviors: A systematic review conducted by the Mothers and Babies Research Centre and the Parent and Infant Mental Health Service in New South Wales, Australia found that mothers who reported experiencing postpartum depression interacted with their infants less sensitively, reported feeling less confident, and chose practical-parenting strategies less often. From this review, the researcher notes that postpartum depression seems to negatively affect parenting skills.
To learn more, click here.
|
|
Thank you to Kaiser Permanente and the Atlanta Women's Foundation for their generous support of the work of Project Healthy Moms.
|
 LOOKING FOR WAYS TO GET INVOLVED?
2) Check out our Facebook page 3) Sign up for our newsletters 4) Contact us to see if there are any current volunteer opportunities at: [email protected] |
SCREENING & IDENTIFICATION TRAINING FOR PERINATAL MOOD AND ANXIETY DISORDERS  Project Healthy Moms' PMAD Screening and Identification Trainings are aimed at healthcare providers (e.g. physicians, nurses, social workers) who come in contact with childbearing women. Through this program, healthcare providers who are involved in maternal and child health are trained to recognize symptoms of the various PMADs and consequences of untreated PMADs. During the training, providers learn how to screen mothers for PMADs and are also educated about treatment options and referral methods. The goal of the training is to ensure that healthcare providers are able to correctly and routinely identify and refer women who may be suffering from PMADs in their practices. To learn more and schedule a training, please contact Sarah Yoss at [email protected] or (678) 904-1968.
|
RESOURCE LIST
Did you know that Mental Health America of Georgia has a resource list for pregnant and postpartum women? It is updated regularly and provides contact information for healthcare providers and outlets for self-care for pregnant and postpartum women.
To access the list, visit www.mhageorgia.org/project-healthy-moms/resource-list/
|
|
PROJECT HEALTHY MOMS WARMLINE AVAILABLE TO ALL GEORGIA WOMEN
 The Project Healthy Moms Warmline is available for ALL Georgia women seeking peer support and resource linkage for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders! Georgia women can call or email the Project Healthy Moms Warmline to contact a mother who has experienced and overcome a maternal mental illness and can provide emotional support and suggest appropriate resources. Please leave a message when you call the Warmline, and a support person will respond within 24-48 hours. It does get better!
678-904-1966 Email: [email protected] |
| WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!
Project Healthy Moms is an important initiative of MHA of Georgia. Perinatal mood disorders are the most common complication of childbirth. In the United States, approximately 20% of new mothers suffer from these devastating illnesses which, if not properly treated, can have a long-term negative impact on the health of not only the mothers, but their children and families as well. Our goal is to increase awareness, identification, treatment, and support of perinatal mood disorders in Georgia, while also reducing the stigma associated with them.
To learn more about Project Healthy Moms, click here.
Project Healthy Moms is only one of many programs developed by MHA of Georgia to further our mission of enhancing the mental health of all Georgians through education, outreach, and advocacy.
Click here to learn more about MHA of Georgia's other programs. Your support will help us continue our work educating Georgians about mental illness, striving to eliminate stigma, and advocating on behalf of people with mental illness in our state. Click here to support MHA of Georgia.
|
|
| |
| |
|
