PREGNANCY, WOMEN’S MENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEPRIVATION: A PARTICIPATORY QUALITATIVE STUDY
Background/objectives Women’s mental health during pregnancy is important for individual and family well-being. British public health and academic policy and guidance promotes service user involvement in health care and research, however collaborative research remains underrepresented in literature relating to pregnant women’s mental health. The aim of this participatory research was to explore women’s and professionals’ perspectives on mental health and on services for pregnant women. Method This qualitative research was undertaken with the involvement of three community members who had firsthand experience of mental health problems during pregnancy. All members of the team were involved in study design, recruitment, data generation and different stages of thematic analysis. Data were transcribed individual and group discussions with 17 women who self-identified as experiencing mental health problems during pregnancy and 16 professionals who work with this group. Means of establishing trustworthiness included triangulation, researcher reflexivity, peer debriefing and comprehensive data analysis. Findings Commonalities and differences between women’s and professionals’ perspectives were examined with particular reference to contexts of relational, systemic and ecological conditions in women’s and professionals’ lives. There were significant areas of commonality including: • Factors that undermine women’s mental health during pregnancy • Levels of formal and informal support available to women • Professionals’ knowledge and organisational pressures • Accessibility of specialist services • What is needed to support women’s mental health Conclusions and Recommendations Women’s mental health is predominantly undermined or supported by relational, experiential and material factors. The local context of socio-economic deprivation is a significant influence on women’s mental health and service demand, capacity and resources. Recommendations are made in relation to community and service developments, staff support and training, and future research.
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