Open Collections

Lawrence, Claire

University of British Columbia

Postpartum depression (PPD) and anxiety (PPA) affect about one-quarter (23%) of women in Canada. Despite this high prevalence, barriers exist making treatment inaccessible for many. Web-enabled resources are a promising solution, increasing access to mental health resources for women in the postpartum period. However, a patient-centered approach is not routinely taken in the development of web resources, leaving postpartum women out of critical decision-making processes. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness, usability, and user satisfaction of PostpartumCare.ca, a web-enabled psychoeducational resource for postpartum mental health, created in partnership with women in British Columbia (BC) affected by postpartum mental illness. Women experiencing PPD and/or PPA from BC who gave birth in the past 12 months were enrolled. Fifty-two were randomized to the intervention group (mean age 31.60 ± 5.12 years), receiving access to PostpartumCare.ca for four weeks, and 51 to a waitlist control group (mean age 34.25 ± 4.84 years). Participants completed measures evaluating PPD (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale [EPDS]) and PPA (Perinatal Anxiety Screening Scale [PASS]) symptoms at baseline, after four weeks, and after a two-week follow-up. Intervention participants also completed measures of website usability and satisfaction after four weeks, and their website metrics were collected. PPD and PPA symptoms were significantly reduced for the intervention group following the use of PostpartumCare.ca, with improvements maintained after a two-week follow-up, corresponding with small-to-medium effect sizes (PPD: partial η² = .03; PPA: partial η² = .04). Intervention participants were also more likely than waitlist controls to recover from clinical levels of PPD symptoms. Overall satisfaction with PostpartumCare.ca was above average, with most reporting perceived changes in depressive and/or anxiety symptoms and endorsing the website’s technical adequacy, content quality, and appearance. Findings suggest that a web-enabled psychoeducational resource, created in collaboration with patient partners, can be effective in reducing symptoms of PPD and PPA, supporting its use as a low-barrier first-line option for women in BC experiencing postpartum mental health concerns.

Text

2023-08-17

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/85508

Women+ and Children’s Health Sciences

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/