Introducing the Postpartum Toolkit: An Examination of the Feasibility, Acceptability and Pilot Efficacy of an Online Clinical Tool to Enhance Postpartum Functioning and Emotional Wellbeing

Supporting parents in the transition to parenthood through wellbeing interventions; An international scoping review

PROBLEM

Many first-time parents experience poor wellbeing during the transition to parenthood.

BACKGROUND

The transition to parenthood can be challenging, with consequences to wellbeing for many first-time parents. While parents are often well-supported to care for their children, there are minimal supports available to care for themselves. To support parents in caring for their children, they need to be supported in their own care.

RESEARCH QUESTION

What evidence-based universal interventions supporting parent wellbeing from conception to 12 months post birth exist?

METHODS

A scoping search across four databases to identify studies measuring and reporting wellbeing outcomes of parents who participated in a prevention intervention aiming to improve wellbeing.

FINDINGS

Seventy-four studies, reporting on 70 unique interventions, were included. Interventions were grouped into eight categories depending on their main mechanism of focus. Studies measured a range of wellbeing outcomes. Thirty-five studies provided evidence of effectiveness across all their reported outcomes. These interventions ranged across the different categories of focus, typically included mothers-only, were delivered post-birth, by a facilitator, in-person and individually.

DISCUSSION

Wellbeing is complex and existing evidence demonstrates a range of intervention components that may effectively support parent wellbeing. Inconsistency in defining wellbeing and diversity in outcome measurements limits our ability to determine which components of these interventions are the most effective.

CONCLUSION

Findings from this review support a multifaceted approach to supporting parents' wellbeing during this transition, with considered intervention focus and design to support a universal population across all facets of wellbeing.

Effectiveness of digital health interventions for perinatal depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Pregnant women and new mothers within 1 year after delivery are at a high risk of depression, yet many do not get the help they need due to wide reasons heralding stigma, access, cost, time, and shortage of human resources. Hence, compelling the exploration of alternate and potentially cost-effective means of delivering care, including the leverage of digital tools. This review aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of digital health interventions in reducing depressive symptoms among perinatal women. Literatures were sought from seven academic databases alongside the references of previous reviews. Included studies were all quantitative study types involving the use of digital health interventions for perinatal women not more than 1-year post-delivery. Standardized mean difference and standard error were used to perform random-effect model meta-analysis. Sensitivity and subgroup analyses were performed to determine certainty and modifiers of the findings, respectively. Forty-eight studies were included in this review with 28 studies used for meta-analyses. Numerous digital channels were identified; however, none specified the use of a digital health theory in its development. The digital health interventions showed a small positive significant effect over the controls (standardized mean difference = 0.29, P = 0.003, I 2 = 34%), and this was significantly influenced by intervention delivery and facilitation modes, time of initiation of the intervention, and period covered by the intervention. Although digital health interventions may hold some potential for perinatal depression, scaling the interventions may be challenging sequel to overlooked influences from the interactions within the human-computer-society complex.

Dissemination of the Women-Centred HIV Care Model: A Multimodal Process and Evaluation

BACKGROUND

Using data from a national cohort study and focus groups, the Women-Centred HIV Care (WCHC) Model was developed to inform care delivery for women living with HIV.

METHODS

Through an evidence-based, integrated knowledge translation approach, we developed 2 toolkits based on the WCHC Model for service providers and women living with HIV in English and French (Canada's national languages). To disseminate, we distributed printed advertising materials, hosted 3 national webinars and conducted 2 virtual capacity-building training series.

RESULTS

A total of 315 individuals attended the webinars, and the average WCHC knowledge increased by 29% (SD 4.3%). In total, 131 service providers engaged in 22 virtual capacity-building training sessions with 21 clinical cases discussed. Learners self-reported increased confidence in 15/15 abilities, including the ability to provide WCHC. As of December 2023, the toolkits were downloaded 7766 times.

CONCLUSIONS

We successfully developed WCHC toolkits and shared them with diverse clinical and community audiences through various dissemination methods.