FemHealth Insights’ Post

What it takes to initiate a change in outlook towards overall health ? A lot. The health outcomes are driven by the decisions we take everyday . While, we do not claim to know it all but PregAmie has been significantly successful in making a small change in how women look after their mental health during pregnancy in particular. Maternal mental health is extremely under discussed in conversations between the clinicians and the patients and their families . Our cohort of 200+ pregnant user have made it a habit of monitoring their mood in the App daily and it has resulted in better outlook towards maternal mental health. With more than 30 percent of women suffering from post-partum depression resulting in reduced quality of life and mother-infant bonding, it is important to have awareness and intervention during gestation period . It will be interesting to see their pregnancy outcomes post delivery as there is enough clinical evidence available to suggest that improvement in ante-natal mental health of the women improves pregnancy outcomes . For women in general, monitoring mood is an important tool for us to intervene when a alarming mood pattern is noticed and it creates a simple, ecosystem of evidence driven intervention which is scalable. #women #maternalhealth #mentalhealth #health #intervention #privatehealth #publichealth #technology #lifestyle

Earlier today, our founder & CEO Kate Ryder joined Tina Reed from Axios for a conversation about improving postpartum care in the U.S. Here are a few of the insights Kate shared from her decade of experience innovating in the maternal health space: 🩺 Specialized care is critical on the postpartum journey: Postpartum individuals need access to specialists across a broad range of needs, including breastfeeding and pelvic floor support, infant sleep coaching, mental health support, and more. 📱 Digital health solutions can be used to screen for social needs throughout pregnancy and postpartum: 90% of our maternity members complete a mental health screening, and more than 35% of members use our maternal mental health services. 💼 Employers play a powerful role in improving maternal care: About half of pregnancies are covered by corporate health plans. Employers can design benefits that provide more equitable care, as well as influence policy decisions and broader care design. Watch the event recording to learn more about the support new parents need during the postpartum period—and the most effective practices and policies to increase access to postpartum and maternal mental health care: https://lnkd.in/gSmNXKFi

Perinatal mental illness has been recognized since the time of Hippocrates and commented on through the centuries. During the transitional period of pregnancy, a woman's psychological status is most complex and affected by a wide range of psychosocial variables. The most frequent symptoms reported are depression and anxiety, sometimes lasting from the beginning of pregnancy until one year after delivery. Without intervention, the escalation of symptoms can turn deadly. "Postpartum psychosis happens to women from all cultures, all socioeconomic classes, all personalities. There are many women with no psychiatric history at all, who live perfectly organized lives, who deliver a child and – within days or weeks of the birth – get severely psychotic, out of the blue.” 2023 U.S. News & World Report The Women's Wellness Program at Austin Oaks Hospital is dedicated to serving all facets of women's wellness in mental health treatment and includes postpartum depression. Early intervention is key. The Women's Wellness Program offers inpatient treatment and two therapeutic outpatient programs for women who need intensive group therapy as a foundation for healing. We are your trusted behavioral healthcare leader for women in Austin, TX and beyond. Call (512) 440-4800 and speak to a clinical care specialist today. #AustinOaksHospital #WomensWellness #PerinatalMentalHealth #postpartumdepression #traumaticbirth #ptsdtherapy #dbtskills #infantloss #griefandloss #obgyn #obstetricsandgynecology #postpartumjourney #austin #austintexas #nursepractitioners #texas #womenswellnessATX

Postpartum mental health issues pose one of the greatest threats to recovering after childbirth. And they still largely go unaddressed in healthcare. By the numbers, only 20% of mothers receive mental health screenings. And the playing field is far from level when we look at disparities among patient communities. Anywhere from 29%-44% of Black mothers experience postpartum depressive symptoms in the U.S. — higher than the national average range of 6%-20%. Simultaneously, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) unveiled much-needed recommendations for more robust monitoring of perinatal patients. As this country faces records in maternal mortality, how do we as an industry compel the greater healthcare system to course-correct and meet higher standards for supporting mental health? I believe #digitalhealth has a big role to play in enabling providers to more thoroughly, consistently, and comprehensively screen their patients — especially during the postpartum period when most mothers are healing at home. Some specific ways include: 1. Meeting patients where they are to engage and assist them: Two important elements for supporting postpartum patients facing mental health issues are consistent screening and urgent action. Any effective technologies meant to enable either of these aspects of care delivery must reach patients where they are, engage them in ways they prefer, and provide actionable assistance to help them manage their care journeys. 2. Improving provider workflows to help care teams do their jobs: Providers everywhere are burdened with record inbox message volumes, documentation responsibilities, and other admin tasks. Just as innovations should be patient-centered to get people the mental health support they need, they also must simplify and improve existing workflows so that care teams can focus more on their postpartum patients. And, yes, #AI will have a lot to do with accomplishing this. 3. Putting the patient at the center of care with accessible channels Engaging patients where they are extends to the very communication channels used by technologies. With patient portals showing time and time again to cause friction for patients and yield subpar use, technology developers must think of ways for patients and providers to intuitively communicate without adopting a new skill or downloading another app. Where do you think technology can play a role in supporting postpartum mental health? Sharing the link to my full write-up in the comment section below. 👇

All articles in EJIHPE (ISSN 2254-9625) Vol 13, Issue 9, are now freely available to access, read and download: https://brnw.ch/21wHIcL COVER STORY: Mental health issues in pregnancy can have negative consequences for both mothers and babies. Mindfulness interventions are known to be a well-suited treatment and prevention method for psychiatric symptoms in pregnant women. With the increasing use of digital technologies, easily accessible and more cost-effective interventions can be provided. Researchers at FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg present here an up-to-date systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized–controlled trials to investigate the effect of digital-based mindfulness interventions on depressive, anxiety, and stress symptoms during pregnancy. They analysed 13 eligible trials with a total of 1373 participants. Digital mindfulness interventions were significantly able to reduce depression and anxiety. They identified certain parameters moderating this effect, such as primiparity and the attrition rate. Read more: https://brnw.ch/21wHIcL #IWD2024 #InspireInclusion #InternationalWomensDay

It’s another good day to share education during #maternalmentalhealthawareness week! Today, we’re highlighting Postpartum/Perinatal Anxiety 🧠 Approximately 10% of women develop anxiety during pregnancy and/or after birth. ❓Did you know? 🤝Perinatal depression and perinatal anxiety often occur together. 📈The indications of perinatal anxiety can range from symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder to symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. 🫣 In anxiety, the compulsive behaviors, hypervigilence, and troubling intrusive thoughts experienced by moms with Perinatal/Postpartum OCD do NOT indicate disconnection from reality, or psychosis. 💭 Intrusive thoughts are not rare! Many moms experience them. Moms with perinatal anxiety are not necessarily at risk of acting on those thoughts. Perinatal Anxiety IS treatable. It’s important to identify any of these signs/symptoms that you or someone close to you may be experiencing. It’s twice as important to share them with your care professional and connect with professional support! 🗣️ Need help? Here’s some numbers you can call/text. These supports are available for you around the clock. 📞📱 1-833-TLC-MAMA 1-800-944-4773

Don't miss out! Empower yourself with invaluable knowledge on maternal mental health and explore how AI can play a transformative role. Join the webinar to learn more!

https://lnkd.in/drDSMwAM An important insight into what can be a key moment in the perinatal journey which is often overlooked, leading women to feel isolated and alone in their experience.

🤝 WOMEN'S HEALTH WEEK This Women’s Health Week, the Police Federation of England and Wales has worked with one of its partners to provide free wellbeing advice. Police Mutual, which provides financial services and welfare support to the police service, has produced a new factsheet dedicated to women’s health and wellbeing. The guide looks at physical health and the steps women can take to look after it. It explores issues such as menopause, osteoporosis, and cancers, as well as pregnancy, fertility, and endometriosis. There are sections on common mental health problems anxiety, depression, and stress, and it also looks at eating disorders as well. The guide, which has been produced for Women’s Health Week (12 May to 15 May) is available to download now for free. https://bit.ly/3wjDUSu

This 'how to support a colleague' series from Fertility Matters at Work is a really valuable resource for managers offering practical guidance on topics that sadly arent often discussed in the workplace or manager training. This one is about how to support colleagues through and beyond pregnancy loss, should those colleagues wish to share their experience at work of course. With 1 in 4 pregnancies ending in loss that's a lot of colleagues who might value some extra support. It's about a 20 min listen.