The Family Mental Health Foundation is a subsidiary of the Washington Psychiatric Foundation, a non-profit, tax-exempt organization incorporated in the District of Columbia. Its aim is to improve the mental health of families through the earliest possible interventions.
A key element of its work is in the area of perinatal mood disorders. Ten to 15 percent of women have severe depression after the birth of a child. This illness not only affects the mother, it disrupts the relationship with the father and children and has been shown to have a profound effect of the development of the newborn. Few of these women are diagnosed or adequately treated. Many suffer for a year of more and some have lifelong disability.
The tragedy? This is a very treatable condition that responds to psychotherapy, medication, or a combination of both. Women who have higher degrees of social stress are more vulnerable. There are powerful factors that prevent doctors and patients from dealing with the condition effectively.
The Foundation has developed a model of healthcare to combat this scourge. It is based on the premise that a universal screening program being instituted in primary care settings, i.e. obstetrical or pediatric, makes sure that no women are missed. However, this is not enough, as many of the women with postpartum mood disorders feel extremely ashamed, inadequate and very fearful that anyone thinks there is something wrong with them. The symptoms of the illness make them feel like they’re bad mothers and that someone will take their baby away. Most of these women are unaware that this condition is the most frequent serious complication of pregnancy.
The World Health Organization commissioned a study to determine which illnesses cause the greatest disability as well as loss of life. Five of the 10 most frequent illnesses are psychiatric and depression in women leads the way.
It is estimated that by the year 2020 depression will be the single most disabling condition worldwide. The rate of depression in women is twice that of men. The age of onset of depression is greatest during the childbearing years. The Foundation believes that the early identification and treatment of women with perinatal mood disorders is the way to make major inroads on the problem.
The Foundation was awarded a four-year grant by the Healthy Start program of the Federal Bureau of Maternal and Child Health to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of such a plan. It will take place and Georgetown University and George Washington University, including the School of Public Health.
Prior to obtaining this grant, the Foundation was subsisting financially from year to year as its original base of support; the Washington Psychiatric Society fell on hard times. Despite the lack of funds, the Foundation carried out innovative and unique programs of early metal health intervention, professional and public education, and a free information and referral service staffed by volunteer psychiatrists. A program to identify kindergarten students who were at risk and then evaluate and treat them in the school itself was implemented.
We now have a professional staff, an office and a consortium of health organizations which includes the D.C. Bureau of Maternal and Family Care, the March of Dimes, the Washington School of Psychiatry, the departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Psychiatry at Georgetown University and the Departments of Pediatrics, and Psychiatry, as well as the Office of Prevention at the School of Public Health.
