Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders affect one in seven pregnant and postpartum women nationwide, making them the most common complication of pregnancy. Unfortunately, only one in 20 women who need treatment for these conditions actually receives it. This translates to a multigenerational issue, which can negatively affect the mother and child’s long-term physical, emotional and developmental health. It also means an estimated $14.2 billion annually in societal costs in the U.S. alone. While not every perinatal individual with mental health concerns has access to a mental health provider, cell phones and text messaging are ubiquitous. Nonjudgmental support delivered through text messaging may be a low cost approach to reaching women who need emotional support in the perinatal period.
Our project aims to evaluate a text-based mentoring program, the Nurture Program, and assess whether it is possible to support mothers through their third trimester of pregnancy and nine months postpartum and enhance their emotional well-being. The Nurture Program combines the convenience of secure text messaging with the personalization of having a trained peer mentor with whom the mother can develop a trusting relationship. This program also provides resources on child development, connections to local support agencies and suggestions for parent-child bonding and parental wellness activities. Surveyed participants of the Nurture Program consistently report their mentor helped them feel less stressed and more confident in their role as a parent. This study will allow us to measure the impact of this cost-effective approach to promoting perinatal emotional well-being.
Perinatal depression affects 10-20% of pregnant and postpartum individuals, impairing parenting self-efficacy and mother-infant interactions and contributing to negative maternal-child outcomes. This research will test comprehensive perinatal depression treatment, Maternal Infant and Dyadic Care (MInD), which includes a brief version of the Promoting First Relationships parenting intervention implemented within perinatal collaborative care, against perinatal collaborative care (CC) only. The aims of this study are to (1) compare the effects of MInD vs. usual perinatal CC on depression, (2) explore associations between parenting self-efficacy, dyadic interaction, and depression to inform a mediational hypothesis, and (3) examine and compare care utilization, trial feasibility, and perceived match of treatment to patient need.
This study aims to refine and test a brief intervention (CARE) that aims to promote recovery in recent sexual assault survivors. CARE is delivered to supporters of sexual assault survivors (e.g., friends, family members, romantic partners), with or without the survivor present. It aims to encourage conversations about the assault and decrease negative reactions by the supporter. In stage 1 of this study, we will conduct feedback sessions with 8-10 dyads of survivors and their supporters to finalize the intervention materials. In stage 2, we will conduct a pilot clinical trial of CARE with 60 dyads, who will be randomized to dyadic intervention, supporter-only intervention, or waitlist control.
LGBT Veterans have faced a long history of stigma, discrimination, and exclusionary policies that were intended to exclude them from military service. Despite recent shifts in policy and increased staff trainings, existing evidence suggests that this group is at high risk for health disparities, particularly with respect to mental health and health risk behaviors. While informative, the research to date has been limited in several respects: cross-sectional designs, collapsing LGBT subgroups, severe lack of data on some subgroups, problems with identifying a comparison group, and lack of data on risk and protective factors and care experiences. This prospective cohort study will fill these gaps, recruiting and conducting surveys online with 1,600 Veterans to identify health disparities, test a conceptual model of prospective risk and protective factors, and assess VA utilization, barriers to care, and treatment preferences. Data from this study will inform future intervention efforts to achieve health equity for LGBT Veterans.
This pilot study will leverage Veteran expertise to inform user-centered design improvements and will pilot the effectiveness of a computerized intervention targeting anxiety sensitivity among this patient population.
The RMHII is a partnership between the AIMS Center and Premera Blue Cross to expand access to evidence-based mental health treatment in rural areas. The AIMS Center will lead clinic selection, training, technical assistance, and practice coaching for up to 30 primary care clinics in rural Washington and Alaska.
Perinatal Psychiatry Case Conference Series is a CME-accredited program for providers in Washington State who want to improve the mental health of their pregnant and postpartum patients.
Facilitated by a multidisciplinary team including UW Medicine perinatal psychiatrists, obstetrician gynecologists, maternal fetal medicine experts, advanced registered nurse practitioners, therapists and social workers, the program aims to increase frontline provider capacity to address common mental disorders in pregnancy and postpartum. Program format is brief didactic followed by in depth case presentation and discussion.
