Health Promotion Project: Addressing Postnatal Depression in Mothers

This health promotion project addresses postnatal depression (PD), a significant issue affecting one in five mothers in Australia. The project aims to raise awareness among expecting mothers about the causes, initial signs, and early interventions for PD. It identifies expecting mothers, women in their first postnatal tenure, and those who have attained puberty as the target groups, highlighting key characteristics such as anxiety and tearfulness, and symptoms like persistent sadness, sleep disturbances, and lack of bonding with the baby. The project delves into the social determinants of health, including poor socio-economic status, lack of education, and unhealthy lifestyle habits, and proposes strategies based on the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion. These include building supportive environments, strengthening community actions, developing personal skills, and advocating for healthy behaviors. The project also outlines the roles of healthcare team members such as mental health nurses, psychologists, dieticians, and physical fitness trainers. Furthermore, it incorporates the principles of Primary Health Care, emphasizing promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative, and supportive activities. The evaluation of the health promotion program will be based on the reduction of depressive states and improvement in the overall quality of life. The project includes a comprehensive list of references from various sources.

P R E S E N T E D B Y:
Health Promotion Program:
Postnatal Depression (PD)

Goal of the Health Promotion
Raising awareness among the expecting
mothers about the causes and initial signs of
the postnatal depression
Implementation of the early interventions to
recover from postnatal depression

Section 1: Community Needs

Target Groups
The main target groups are:
The expecting mothers
Women who are in their first postnatal tenure
Women who have attained their puberty

Health Issue of the Focus
Postnatal Depression (PD)
According to the 2010 Australian National Infant Survey, one
out of five mothers of children aged between 24 months or
less suffer from PD

The initially signs of PD is surfaced in the form of depression
during the perinatal stage
At least 111,000 mothers in Australia were diagnosed with
depression and of them 56,000 later developed PD during
2011 to 2012.
(Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [AIHW], 2012)

Key characteristics of the target group
Anxious and tearful during the first week of
giving birth: The condition is known as "baby
blues".
Baby blue does not last for more than 2
weeks after birth but if the symptom persists
longer then it is a possible signs of PD.
(Tham et al. 2016)

The main symptoms of PD
Persistent feeling of sadness and low mood
Loss of interest in the wider world
Difficulty in getting sleep at night
Feeling sleepy during the day
Withdrawing from the social activities
Problem in decision making and concentration
Thoughts of hurting the baby
Lack of bonding with the baby
(Tham et al. 2016)

Section 2: Social determinants

Social Determinants and PD
AIHW in the year 2012 reported that:
The vulnerability of the PD among women increases with:
Age: Younger mothers (under 25 years of age) are more likely
to develop PD
Smoking of tobacco
Lower financial background of the family
Obesity or high BMI (basal metabolic index)
Undergone emergency caesarean section
Main social determinants of health identified in PD
Poor socio-economic status of the family
Lack of proper education and health awareness
Unhealthy lifestyle habits

Target of Healthcare Project
Education awareness towards
Having child at young age
Consumption of alcohol and smoking of tobacco before
and after pregnancy
Participation in the community health awareness
program to educate about healthy lifestyle habits
during pregnancy
This will help to cover the social determinants of lack
of proper exposure to knowledge and health-
awareness and information about the healthy lifestyle
and concepts of having protected sex.

Section 3: Health Promotion
Principles

Health Promotion Framework
The Health Promotion Program will follow
the framework of Ottawa Charter Health
Promotion by World Health Organisation
(WHO)