Postpartum depression in a maternity hospital in Nigeria

To explore the recognition and management of postpartum depression (PPD) by the obstetric team in a maternity hospital concomitantly, was to find the rate of PPD in the centre.

A descriptive cross-sectional study.

Island Maternity Hospital, Lagos, Nigeria; a moderately large obstetric facility with 68 beds and 42 paediatric cots.

The medical staff including doctors and nurse midwives in the study centre. Concomitantly, a sample of women that delivered in the hospital during the study period.

Seventy two (65.5%) of the total 110 obstetric staff in the hospital consented to the study; made up of 10 doctors and 62 midwives of varying cadres. 43.1% of them admitted their difficulty to recognise PPD with X2 of 25.8, while 19.4% expressed doubt in the obstetric team's ability to manage PPD. 86.1% would rather refer PPD cases to the psychiatrists, but saw stigma as a militating factor. Hence 77.8% with X2 of 65.3 would want consultation-liaison psychiatric services established in the centre. Concomitantly, of the 252 women assessed with EPDS, 23% were depressed with scores >12.

It is concluded that there is need to update the obstetric team's knowledge on the management of PPD through Continuous Medical Education (CME) to which 97.2% of them agreed.