HSE plans to screen new mothers for depression and anxiety

New mothers are to be asked a series of mental health questions to screen for depression and anxiety under plans being devised by the Health Service Executive.

The HSE confirmed in a letter to Social Democrats co-leader Catherine Murphy last week that a national guideline for public health nurses was being worked on and expected to be approved before the end of the year.

“There exists a recently developed, but yet to be clinically approved, national guideline on postnatal care in the public health service,” it said. “This contains a series of mental health screening questions to screen for depression and anxiety ... These questions can be repeated at the three-month assessment and are validated for use up to 12 months post-delivery.”

Ms Murphy had asked whether the HSE plans to modernise the mental health protocols for public health nurses in the course of engaging with mothers in post-birth and follow-up care.

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The HSE released figures this summer detailing how one-in-five women will experience a mental health issue in pregnancy or after the birth of their baby. The HSE also said depression and anxiety are the most common mental health problems in pregnancy, affecting about 10 to 15 out of every 100 pregnant women.

Separately, Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman told Ms Murphy that if the outcome of an initial social work visit is that there is an immediate risk of significant harm to the child’s safety, extended family members may be asked to assist.

“Consideration will be given to whether there are appropriate extended family members to provide immediate care for the child and also whether consideration of admission to foster or residential care, age appropriate to the child’s care needs, is necessary to ensure the child’s safety,” he said in response to a parliamentary question.

“An admission to care will occur either with the voluntary consent of the parents or guardians, or by Tusla making an application to the District Court for an emergency care order or interim care order application.”

Mr O’Gorman said in some circumstances where there are concerns for a baby, Tusla will get a detailed report from a social work team and decide whether a residential parenting assessment unit for the mother and baby is needed.

“This would potentially be a matter for court oversight and representation by legal teams. The appointment of a guardian ad litem would also be considered by the court in these circumstances.”

An Oireachtas committee heard earlier this month that almost 15,000 women are affected by perinatal mental illnesses in Ireland each year. The information was provided by the HSE’s national clinical lead for the service.

Prof Anthony McCarthy, a consultant perinatal psychiatrist at the National Maternity Hospital, said a mother is 19 times more likely to be admitted as a psychiatric inpatient in the first six weeks after the birth of a baby than in any other six-week period in her life.