TY - JOUR
AU - A. Lavallée
AU - V. Babineau
AU - K. D'Antonio
AU - E. Werner
AU - A. T. Drysdale
AU - M. Osbourne
AU - M. Grubb
AU - N. Moise
AU - I. Reuveni
AU - Z. Zhang
AU - S. Lee
AU - D. Dumitriu
AU - M. D'Alton
AU - C. Monk
A1 - 
AB - PURPOSE: Women’s Mental Health @Obstetrics and Gynecology (WMH @Ob/Gyn) is a novel, insurance-based clinical model integrated in Ob/Gyn practices that offers approachable, acceptable, available, and affordable mental healthcare to women across the lifespan. Women seen by Ob/Gyn physicians for physical healthcare needs are referred to the WMH @Ob/Gyn service based on patient request, provider observation, and/or results on universal depression screening. WMH@Ob/Gyn’ services include mental health screening, psychotherapy, psychopharmacology and support groups, all embedded into Ob/Gyn. Here, we sought to evaluate utilization rates of mental health services as an outcome of increased access resulting from real-world implementation of WMH @Ob/Gyn. METHODS: This prospective observational cohort study followed all patients referred to WMH @Ob/Gyn from 02/2020 to 12/2022. Data were obtained from a clinical registry and patient electronic health records. Utilization was estimated on initiation (proportion of women who attended at least one mental health visit), and sustainment (proportion of women who attended three or more visits). RESULTS: 2,661 women were referred to WMH @Ob/Gyn; 65% initiated, out of which 36% sustained treatment. Hispanic/Latina/Spanish women were less likely to initiate treatment. Of those who initiated, women whose insurance was non-participating in mental healthcare, women that were not pregnant, and younger women, had lower odds of sustaining treatment. CONCLUSION: WMH @Ob/Gyn facilitates the initiation and sustainment of mental health treatment at rates considerably higher than those observed in comparable perinatal-integrated programs or the general population. However, persistent systemic barriers, including disparities in physical and mental health insurance coverage, continue to constrain equitable, sustained access to mental healthcare. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00737-025-01652-4.; WMH @Ob/Gyn is an Ob/Gyn integrated mental health service available to women of all ages referred by their Ob/Gyn provider. As a result of increased access to services, 65% of women referred to WMH @Ob/Gyn initiated mental health treatment, and 36% of those sustained. Insurance coverage continues to be a barrier to engaging in sustained mental health services. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00737-025-01652-4.; eng
AD - Center for Early Relational Health, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA.; Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA.; Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA.; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, The Bronx, USA.; Montefiore Medical Center, The Bronx, USA.; Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA.; Psychiatry Division, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.; Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.; Department of Biostatistics, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, USA.; Departments of Biostatistics and Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA.; New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, USA.; Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA. cem31@cumc.columbia.edu.; New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, USA. cem31@cumc.columbia.edu.
AN - 41486212
BT - Arch Womens Ment Health
C5 - Healthcare Disparities; Education & Workforce
CP - 1
DA - Jan 5
DO - 10.1007/s00737-025-01652-4
DP - NLM
ET - 20260105
IS - 1
JF - Arch Womens Ment Health
LA - eng
N2 - PURPOSE: Women’s Mental Health @Obstetrics and Gynecology (WMH @Ob/Gyn) is a novel, insurance-based clinical model integrated in Ob/Gyn practices that offers approachable, acceptable, available, and affordable mental healthcare to women across the lifespan. Women seen by Ob/Gyn physicians for physical healthcare needs are referred to the WMH @Ob/Gyn service based on patient request, provider observation, and/or results on universal depression screening. WMH@Ob/Gyn’ services include mental health screening, psychotherapy, psychopharmacology and support groups, all embedded into Ob/Gyn. Here, we sought to evaluate utilization rates of mental health services as an outcome of increased access resulting from real-world implementation of WMH @Ob/Gyn. METHODS: This prospective observational cohort study followed all patients referred to WMH @Ob/Gyn from 02/2020 to 12/2022. Data were obtained from a clinical registry and patient electronic health records. Utilization was estimated on initiation (proportion of women who attended at least one mental health visit), and sustainment (proportion of women who attended three or more visits). RESULTS: 2,661 women were referred to WMH @Ob/Gyn; 65% initiated, out of which 36% sustained treatment. Hispanic/Latina/Spanish women were less likely to initiate treatment. Of those who initiated, women whose insurance was non-participating in mental healthcare, women that were not pregnant, and younger women, had lower odds of sustaining treatment. CONCLUSION: WMH @Ob/Gyn facilitates the initiation and sustainment of mental health treatment at rates considerably higher than those observed in comparable perinatal-integrated programs or the general population. However, persistent systemic barriers, including disparities in physical and mental health insurance coverage, continue to constrain equitable, sustained access to mental healthcare. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00737-025-01652-4.; WMH @Ob/Gyn is an Ob/Gyn integrated mental health service available to women of all ages referred by their Ob/Gyn provider. As a result of increased access to services, 65% of women referred to WMH @Ob/Gyn initiated mental health treatment, and 36% of those sustained. Insurance coverage continues to be a barrier to engaging in sustained mental health services. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00737-025-01652-4.; eng
PY - 2026
SN - 1434-1816 (Print); 1434-1816
SP - 5
ST - Mental health service utilization in a novel insurance-based Ob/Gyn integrated model for women across the lifespan
T1 - Mental health service utilization in a novel insurance-based Ob/Gyn integrated model for women across the lifespan
T2 - Arch Womens Ment Health
TI - Mental health service utilization in a novel insurance-based Ob/Gyn integrated model for women across the lifespan
U1 - Healthcare Disparities; Education & Workforce
U3 - 10.1007/s00737-025-01652-4
VL - 29
VO - 1434-1816 (Print); 1434-1816
Y1 - 2026
ER -