Perinatal mental health and wellness project
The Perinatal mental health and wellness project aimed to develop and evaluate a collaborative model for mental health promotion, illness prevention and early intervention in the perinatal period.
We provided project funding to both the Queensland Centre for Perinatal and Infant Mental Health and Women’s Health Queensland Wide to lead this project.
The Queensland Centre for Perinatal and Infant Mental Health led components of the project involving:
- clinical personnel (including midwives and perinatal mental health workers)
- people with a lived experience of perinatal mental illness in education and peer support groups.
Women’s Health Queensland Wide led the components aimed at strengthening the role for the non-government sector in supporting mental health and wellness among expectant and new parents, their infants and families through collaboration with public maternity services and people with a lived experience of perinatal mental illness.
Queensland Health addressed the need for increased perinatal and infant mental health services in its Connecting care to recovery services plan.
Final report
Conducted from 2015 to 2017, the project demonstrated the effectiveness of a collaborative, cross-sectorial mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention model.
The project also highlighted the value of including people with a lived experience of perinatal illness and recovery into supports for parents.
- Read The Perinatal Mental Health and Wellness Project: Developing a collaborative model for mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention in the perinatal period, September 2017
- Read the Commission’s response to the project report.
Service enhancement discussion paper
We released the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Service Enhancement Discussion Paper in 2014, focusing on the need to strengthen clinical perinatal and infant mental health services across Queensland.
The report also drew on data published in the Maternal and Perinatal Morbidity in Queensland (2013) report published by the Queensland Maternal and Perinatal Quality Council. The discussion paper noted that the adequacy of investment in community support and education programs by the non-government sector had not been considered in that report.
Community responses
We asked for community views on the priorities outlined in the discussion paper. Opportunities for strengthening other services and community-based supports.
The report Community views on Perinatal Infant Mental Health Services and community views summary outlines the community responses received.
Media releases
- Read the media release More support needed for postnatal depression
- Commissioner Dr Lesley van Schoubroeck speaks to The Courier Mail about perinatal mental health
