Screening and Treatment for Maternal Depression and Related Behavioral Disorders Program

The purpose of the Screening and Treatment for Maternal Depression and Related Behavioral Disorders program is to establish, improve, or maintain programs that expand health care providers’ capacity to screen, assess, treat, and refer pregnant and postpartum women1 for maternal depression and related behavioral health disorders2, including in rural and medically underserved areas. The program’s overarching goal is to improve the mental health and well-being of pregnant and postpartum women and, thereby, their infants’ social and emotional development, through increased access to affordable, culturally and linguistically appropriate treatment and recovery support services. This cooperative agreement program may be built into an existing statewide or regional psychiatric consultation service, such as one that supports primary care providers serving children and adolescents, where screening for maternal/caregiver depression is now the recommended practice. With limited psychiatric providers3 across the country, the Screening and Treatment for Maternal Depression and Related Behavioral Disorders program will increase statewide or regional access (in one or more communities) to the screening, assessment, and treatment of pregnant and postpartum women for maternal depression and related behavioral health disorders, including but not limited to depression, anxiety, opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder. This program will offer resources to any front-line health care providers serving pregnant and postpartum women, including but not limited to, obstetricians/gynecologists, nurse midwives, pediatricians, psychiatric providers, mental health care providers, and primary care providers