Advocacy PDF Print E-mail

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Photo: Alexia Beckerling

Our advocacy work aims to raise awareness about the hidden epidemic of maternal mental health.

Evidence from the Project's service arm allows us to demonstrate the positive impacts of maternal mental health care, strengthening our advocacy work which aims to:

  • raise awareness about maternal mental health problems
  • inform global and local policy makers, health workers and the public about effective and affordable prevention and treatment
  • improve service delivery to pregnant and postnatal women

The PMPH's reach is much greater than the direct care it provides to its patients.

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Global networks

The PMHP frequently consults to the World Health Organisation (WHO) providing techinical expertise and commentary.

It is also an institutional partner of the Movement for Global Mental Health and recently joined the Global Mental Health Community, an initiative of the Global Initiative of Psychiatry.

The Project is part of the Centre for Public Mental Health collaboration based at the Universities of Cape Town and Stellenbosch.

The PMHP has contributed to several documents, mauals and guides, noted to the right.
  • Mental Health Gap Action Programme Intervention Guide for mental, neurological and substance use disorders in non-specialised settings.
  • WHO and Department of Mental Health manual:  Scaling up for maternal mental health in low and middle income countries.
  • WHO series (draft) linking reproductive health to generic primary care:
    • Maternal mental health: Training of Trainers
    • Maternal mental health: Training of health workers
    • Maternal mental health: Training of community leaders
Policy development The PMHP has developed policy briefs on a range of issues related to maternal mental health, both locally and internationally.
Click here for more information.
Journal articles
The PMHP has numerous papers in development covering service utlisation in the Project, training health workers in maternal mental health, a summative evaluation of the Project's service programme and key vulnerabilities for maternal mental illness.
Most recently, the PMHP was invited to contribute Editorial Commentary to the upcoming edition of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health.
Click here to read the abstract.
Conferences The PMHP team attends or participates in a minimum of two professional conferences a year.

2010 The Marce Society Conference: Perinatal Mental Health Research - Harvesting the potential, Pittsburgh, USA.

Mood changes in the Perinatal Mental Health Project.

2010 South African Society of Psychiatrists Conference.

Poster presentation: Maternal Mental Health: addressing key vulnerabilities.

2009 Expanding our Hoizons: Moving mental health and wellness promotion into the mainstream, Toronto, Canada.

The 'secret history' method: training maternity staff for mental health promotion in Cape Town.
Maternal antenatal distress: risk factors and service utilisation in a South African setting.

2009 World Mental Health Conference, Athens, Greece.

Planning for maternal mental health care at primary care level in resource constrained districts in South Africa.

2009 South African Society of Psychiatrists Conference.

Screening for psychological disorders in pregnancy in low-resource settings.

2009 South African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Gender and Development ratification seminar

2009 South African National AIDS Council working meeting of the NGO techincal task team.

2008 International Mental Health Conference, Institute of Psychiatry at The Maudsley, London, UK.

The PMHP poster  "The Perinatal Mental Health Project a summative evaluation of a pilot implementation programme” won 1st prize.

2008 Paediatric AIDS Treatment for Africa (PATA) Conference Kigali, Rwanda.

Presentation: Mental health considerations for mothers caregivers of HIV positive children.
Media
The Project actively explores opportunities to champion maternal mental health issues in print media, on radio stations, on television, and online.
 
Perinatal Mental Health Project