Treatment of Postnatal Depression at Clínic

The Perinatal Psychiatry and Psychology program of the Hospital Clínic has treated more than 500 mothers with a major depressive episode in the postnatal period since the year 2004. It currently receives around 80 requests per year to assess and treat mothers with this disorder during the first months of the postnatal period.

The clinical and research experience accumulated over the years has led the Clinic to design the Multidisciplinary Integral Mother-Baby Care Program for Postnatal Depression. This program enables a clinical diagnosis to be made, as well as a prognosis and care based on the needs of the mother-baby dyad. It is made through demonstrated scientific evidence-based interventions and the development of specific evaluation protocols that include psychiatric illnesses and maternal functioning, like mother-child bonding and neurodevelopment.

In this way, it has incorporated the specific intervention procedure for the treatment of postnatal depression based on making shared decisions and directed towards the introduction and maintenance of breastfeeding in combination with antidepressant drugs. With this model, a risk-benefit ratio is performed on the psychotic drugs, taking into account the available scientific evidence, the professional clinical experience, and the consideration and wishes of the mother. 

The evaluation and intervention program of maternal bonding with mother and baby group activities directed by a clinical psychologist has been developed since 2014. Furthermore, it has implemented the Program for the stimulation and promotion for the proper neurodevelopment of the babies.

In 2018, after the opening of the CLINIC-BCN Mother-Baby Day Hospital , it offers mothers with depression and other postnatal disorders a pioneering intervention directed at the intensive, integral, and multidisciplinary treatment with professionals of psychiatry, perinatal clinical psychology, mental health nursing, paediatric nursing, and social health workers.

This team has helped to consolidate previous existing programs as to develop new intervention programs for group psychology treatment, psycho-educational programs with advanced practice nurses in perinatal mental health and family interventions like the Positive Parenthood Group (Grupo de Parentalidad Positiva).