Postpartum women get a project dedicated just to them!
The project, called Improving Postpartum Outcomes of Severe Mental Illnesses in Ethnically Diverse Mothers (POSIE), is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and involves UK universities including Sheffield Hallam University, NHS trusts and charities.
The research aims to improve care for mothers suffering from conditions such as major depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis.
Professor Hora Soltani, Professor of Maternal and Child Health at Sheffield Hallam University and member of the POSIE project team, said: “As leader of the perinatal mental health theme within the NIHR Maternity Disparities Consortium, I am delighted to be part of this very important project.”
She continues: “Becoming a mother is often seen as a joyful and transformative experience, but for some women it can also be a period of significant vulnerability with poorer outcomes for disadvantaged communities.”
“This project aims to ensure that every mother, regardless of background, receives compassionate, effective and culturally responsive support needed for long-term recovery and wellbeing,” the report said.
“Perinatal mental health matters because its impact spans generations, making equity and inclusion a societal imperative.”
Suicide remains the leading cause of maternal death within the first year after childbirth, and the number of new mothers seeking mental health help increased by 30 percent between 2022 and 2023.
Shaheda Akhtar, a peer support facilitator with Action on Postpartum Psychosis (APP) and PPI lead on the POSIE project, said: “We regularly hear from black and Asian women who have had postpartum psychosis about delays in treatment and admission, that care and information did not feel appropriate for them, and that they struggled to find information about this treatable medical emergency.”
“Our peer supporters help women understand what they are experiencing and combat isolation and fear,” she said, adding: “At APP we educate health professionals by sharing women’s powerful stories, but we know they are crying out for evidence-based, practical ways to improve care.”
The POSIE project will work with at least 120 women with experience of postpartum serious mental illness from Manchester, Sheffield, London and Oxford, who will help design a culturally safe care pathway, which will then be tested and evaluated in six locations across the country.
