Health services research into postnatal depression: results from a preliminary cross-cultural study

Little is known about the availability and uptake of health and welfare services by women with postnatal depression in different countries.

Within the context of a cross-cultural research study, to develop and test methods for undertaking quantitative health services research in postnatal depression.

Interviews with service planners and the collation of key health indicators were used to obtain a profile of service availability and provision. A service use questionnaire was developed and administered to a pilot sample in a number of European study centres.

Marked differences in service access and use were observed between the centres, including postnatal nursing care and contacts with primary care services. Rates of use of specialist services were generally low. Common barriers to access to care included perceived service quality and responsiveness. On the basis of the pilot work, a postnatal depression version of the Service Receipt Inventory was revised and finalised.

This preliminary study demonstrated the methodological feasibility of describing and quantifying service use, highlighted the varied and often limited use of care in this population, and indicated the need for an improved understanding of the resource needs and implications of postnatal depression.