The content and delivery of psychological interventions for perinatal depression by non-specialist health workers in low and middle income countries: a systematic review.
Chowdhary, Neerja;
Sikander, Siham;
Atif, Najia;
Singh, Neha;
Ahmad, Ikhlaq;
Fuhr, Daniela C;
Rahman, Atif;
Patel, Vikram;
(2013)
The content and delivery of psychological interventions for perinatal depression by non-specialist health workers in low and middle income countries: a systematic review.
Best practice & research Clinical obstetrics & gynaecology, 28 (1).
pp. 113-133.
ISSN 1521-6934
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2013.08.013
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Psychological interventions delivered by non-specialist health workers are effective for the treatment of perinatal depression in low- and middle-income countries. In this systematic review, we describe the content and delivery of such interventions. Nine studies were identified. The interventions shared a number of key features, such as delivery provided within the context of routine maternal and child health care beginning in the antenatal period and extending postnatally; focus of the intervention beyond the mother to include the child and involving other family members; and attention to social problems and a focus on empowerment of women. All the interventions were adapted for contextual and cultural relevance; for example, in domains of language, metaphors and content. Although the competence and quality of non-specialist health workers delivered interventions was expected to be achieved through structured training and ongoing supervision, empirical evaluations of these were scarce. Scalability of these interventions also remains a challenge and needs further attention.