Healthcare professionals’ views on the accessibility and acceptability of perinatal mental health services for South Asian and Black women: a qualitative study

BMC Medicine

Research Article

Sarah Bicknell¹  Kiren Bains¹  Jelena Janković¹  Alex Copello²  Nikolina Jovanović³  Jessica Fletcher-Rogers⁴  Maev Conneely⁵  Rosemarie McCabe⁶  Stefan Priebe⁷ 

[1] Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK;Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK;School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK;Centre for Psychiatry and Mental Health, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary, University of London, London, UK;East London NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK;East London NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK;East London NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK;Unit for Social and Community Psychiatry (WHO Collaborating Centre for Mental Health Service Development), Queen Mary University of London, London, UK;School of Health and Psychological Sciences, City University of London, London, UK;Unit for Social and Community Psychiatry (WHO Collaborating Centre for Mental Health Service Development), Queen Mary University of London, London, UK;

关键词: Perinatal mental health;    Maternity care;    Healthcare professionals;    Ethnicity;    Medical staff;    Nursing staff;    Midwifery;    Qualitative research;    Mental health;    Health inequalities;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12916-023-02978-5

 received in 2023-02-16, accepted in 2023-07-13,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundPerinatal mental illness affects one third of new and expectant mothers. Individuals from ethnic minority groups experience higher rates of mental health problems and higher suicide rates. Despite this, women from ethnic minorities—Black and South Asian women in particular—are less likely to receive support from mental health services in the perinatal period. Healthcare professionals (HCPs) who have contact with women during this period have a unique perspective, and their views may provide insights to understand and remedy this health inequality. This study aimed to identify healthcare professionals’ views on the current accessibility and acceptability of perinatal mental health services, and ways of improving services by addressing the barriers for these women.MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty-four healthcare professionals who work with patients in the perinatal period. Purposive sampling was used to select HCPs from a range of different professions (including mental health staff, midwifery, primary care, social care). The data were analysed using Framework Analysis.ResultsThree main themes were identified from the data: (1) lack of awareness and understanding of perinatal mental illness and service structure in both healthcare professionals and patients; (2) patients’ relationships with family, friends and healthcare professionals can both hinder and facilitate access to services; (3) healthcare professionals encourage raising awareness, flexibility, developing shared understandings and questioning assumptions to improve the accessibility and acceptability of services.ConclusionKey insights into explaining and remedying the health inequalities observed between ethnic groups were proposed by healthcare professionals. Recommendations included sharing information; taking steps to ensure each woman was considered as an individual in her relationship with her culture, ethnicity and childrearing practices; and healthcare professionals addressing their possible unconscious biases through engaging in personal reflexive practices. Reasons these are currently not being implemented deserve further research, and the potential of novel roles such as peer support workers in bridging the space between ideals and practice needs further investigation.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2023