Implications for Nursing Practice

Identi¢cation of the unique needs of postpartum wo-

men experiencing long-term bed rest for antepartum

complications has facilitated development of stan-

dards of care speci¢c to this population that include

physical, psychological, and social components and

may serve as a model for health care organizations.

Perinatal Support: Helping Pregnant Women Fight

Mood and Anxiety Disorders

Poster Presentation

Purpose for the Program

Women are more likely to experience depres-

sion during childbearing years than any

other time in their lives, and15% of all women will ex-

perience postpartum depression after giving birth.

Another 20% will experience depression symptoms

during pregnancy. When a mother’s mental health is

compromised, the entire family is a¡ected.

Many women with pre- and postpartum depression

are not receiving treatment, thereby prolonging

their condition and disconcerting emotions.

Proposed Change

Patients must seek help when they are depressed,

and many do not know where to turn. They may feel

awkward or uncomfortable discussing their emo-

tions. Wanting to help patients through this critical

time, Reynolds Army Community Hospital devel-

oped a screening process for depression. They

created a support group using Cognitive Behav-

ioral Therapy designed to help with depression

during pregnancy and postpartum.

Implementation, Outcomes, and Evaluation

Patients were told about the group at obstetric

(OB) orientation and then screened at 28 weeks

pregnancy, 2 weeks postpartum, and 6 weeks post-

partum. Very few patients attended the support

group, and Reynolds was considering dropping

the class but decided to try once more to make this

class a success, believing that their patients

needed the support.They decided to send informa-

tion about their pre- and postpartum support group

through their weekly e-mail service in addition to

notifying patients during OB orientation and

throughout their pregnancies. Through electronic

communications, patients receive educational in-

formation and resources every week from their

care team. Within 1 month, Reynolds reached its

goal of having 8 to 10 patients at the support group,

with exciting behavioral results. They now consis-

tently have 10 or more patients in the group, both

active duty and civilians.

Implications for Nursing Practice

To date, there is no de¢nitive prevention for pre- or

postpartum depression; however, having a solid

social support system through Reynolds’ support

group has shown to help reduce the severity of de-

pression, while empowering patients with coping

skills. Early identi¢cation and intervention have

been shown to improve long-term diagnoses for

most women. Reaching women through our e-mail

service at the precise moments when they need

support and guidance, Reynolds Army Community

Hospital is able to help many women through this

di⁄cult and emotional time.

They May Be Young, They May Be Healthy . . .

So . . . Why Do They Fall?

Poster Presentation

Purpose for the Program

Todiscuss the implementation of a fall reduction

program and a fall risk assessment tool that

would be appropriate to the obstetrics (OB) popula-

tion. The program is based on the normal

pregnancy-related physiological changes known

to increase the risk for accidental falls, unantici-

pated falls, or even an anticipated fall during

pregnancy and postpartum.

Lisa Singleton, RN, BSN,

SANE-A, Department of Spe-

cialty Care Clinics, Reynolds

Army Community Hospital,

Ft. Sill, OK

Keywordsperinatal depressionpostpartumpostpartum depressionperinatal supportdepressioncognitive behavioral therapy

Childbearing

S12 JOGNN, 40, S2-S84; 2011. DOI: 10.1111/j.1552-6909.2011.01242.x http://jognn.awhonn.org

I N N O V A T I V E P R O G R A M S

Proceedings of the 2011 AWHONN Convention