Description
Postnatal mental health issues such as depression are a significant public health concern, affecting 17.22% (95% CI 16.00 – 18.51) of the global population and up to 39.96% (95%CI 27.81–53.4) in specific regions. Country development and income levels have a major effect on postnatal depression - especially in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) where a lack of education, infrastructure as well as poverty and organisational challenges are just a few of the deficiencies in health care systems which weaken mental health care provision to new mothers and reduce the effectiveness of any help-seeking behaviours.
Emerging evidence suggest that digital peer support, which includes the use of technologies such as smartphone applications and online forums, has been shown to provide interesting vectors to prevent perinatal depression and anxiety, support new mothers and improve postpartum well-being. Barriers to care such as high cost, remoteness, and inadequate health infrastructure are likely to be reduced with the implementation of suitable digital postnatal peer support tools.
Any health intervention which isn’t accessible to all individuals can have the unintended consequence of exacerbating existing health inequities. In India, 71% of women own a mobile phone in 2021 and the density of mental health workforces is estimated to be 0.75 health professionals per 100.000 inhabitants which is far below the global average of 13 mental health workers per 100,000 inhabitants. Switzerland, on the other hand, has the highest density of psychiatrists and nurses in the world relative to its population.
I am conducting my PhD in Switzerland and India, two different cultural and socioeconomic contexts, to investigate the implementation and the effectiveness of a digital peer support tool in promoting postnatal mental health.
During the GHF, I would like to present the following points :
- The latest published researches on the use of digital tools for women's postnatal health
- Results regarding a sentiment analysis of #postpartum tweets globally, allowing to understand the public sentiment behind this period of life.
- A forthcoming randomized controlled trial to be conducted in Switzerland to evaluate the effect of a digital peer support tool on women's postnatal mental health.
| Contact Geneva Health Forum | I would like to receive information about the GHF 2024 conference and other GHF activities / Je souhaite recevoir des informations sur la conférence GHF 2024 et d'autres activités du GHF. |
|---|
