Literature Collection

BACKGROUND: Perinatal depression, the most common pregnancy complication, is associated with negative maternal-offspring outcomes. Despite existence of effective treatments, it is under-recognized and under-treated. Professional organizations recommend universal screening, yet multi-level barriers exist to ensuring effective diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up. Integrating mental health and obstetric care holds significant promise for addressing perinatal depression. The overall study goal is to compare the effectiveness of two active interventions: (1) the Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Program (MCPAP) for Moms, a state-wide, population-based program, and (2) the PRogram In Support of Moms (PRISM) which includes MCPAP for Moms plus a proactive, multifaceted, practice-level intervention with intensive implementation support. METHODS: This study is conducted in two phases: (1) a run-in phase which has been completed and involved practice and patient participant recruitment to demonstrate feasibility for the second phase, and (2) a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT), which is ongoing, and will compare two active interventions 1:1 with ten Ob/Gyn practices as the unit of randomization. In phase 1, rates of depressive symptoms and other demographic and clinical features among patients were examined to inform practice randomization. Patient participants to be recruited in phase 2 will be followed longitudinally until 13 months postpartum; they will have 3-5 total study visits depending on whether their initial recruitment and interview was at 4-24 or 32-40 weeks gestation, or 1-3 months postpartum. Sampling throughout pregnancy and postpartum will ensure participants with different depressive symptom onset times. Differences in depression symptomatology and treatment participation will be compared between patient participants by intervention arm. DISCUSSION: This manuscript describes the full two-phase study protocol. The study design is innovative because it combines effectiveness with implementation research designs and integrates critical components of participatory action research. Our approach assesses the feasibility, acceptance, efficacy, and sustainability of integrating a stepped-care approach to perinatal depression care into ambulatory obstetric settings; an approach that is flexible and can be tailored and adapted to fit unique workflows of real-world practices. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02760004, registered prospectively on May 3, 2016.

Early identification and intervention are critical to prevent physical and mental health complications, chronicity, and premature death associated with eating disorders. However, primary medical and behavioral health care clinicians often do not feel confident or competent to diagnose and manage patients with eating disorders. This pilot study describes an innovative telementoring project (Project ECHO® Eating Disorders) that builds a geographically defined collaborative learning community to bridge the knowledge gap between eating disorder specialists located in eating disorder service sites and community-based practitioners, often living in remote areas. We describe the program and recruitment strategies and review baseline participant evaluation findings. Continuing Medical Education (CME) evaluation findings are presented as a measure of practitioner acceptability and satisfaction. Content analysis of CME participant evaluation comments provides an understanding of the impact of the program on participant knowledge and intended practice changes. We end with implications for training, practice, and research.