On May 12 I attended a Capitol Hill briefing on perinatal mood disorders organized by a little-known nonprofit group called the Family Mental Health Institute (FMHI). Unfortunantly, the event was neither well-publicized nor particularly well-attended, with almost no press and only a small handful of congressional staffers on hand. I learned about it quite by accident, thanks to my client Judy Meehan, exec director of the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition and one of her colleagues at the National Mental Health Association.
The lack of buzz, the poor planning and turnout did not reflect the urgency and importance of women's mental health. Nor, I believe, did it reflect how interested or committed our congressional leaders are in women's health, child health, and family wellbeing. They simply didn't know it was happening. And those who did attend did not get a clear "call to action," so they returned to their offices without a real mandate for doing something about the problem.
Sad, and a bit of a waste. But the up-side is that the small group of us who attended did get to meet and hear the personal story of former "Mrs. United States" Edrienne Carpenter, the guest speaker. As "Mrs. Texas" and "Mrs. United States," Edrienne has used her public visibility to educate about postpartum depression, appearing on The Dr. Phil Show and speaking to community groups across the country.
As a survivor of severe PPD that went undiagnosed and untreated for years, Edrienne has become an unlikely but powerful advocate for accessible diagnosis and treatment, accurate information, and better overall health care for mothers who suffer from perinatal mood disorders. Her story is not uncommon, but her willingness to share its ugliest, most personal details makes for an undiluted wake-up call.
In my view, the two most pressing goals for advocates working toward better perinatal mental health - both of which Edrienne Carpenter alluded to in her Hill address - are:
* Universal, mandatory screening of all women for early PPD detection, as part of basic perinatal medical care, and
* Educated, proactive healthcare providers (ob/gyns, pediatricians, nurses, midwives, doulas, childbirth educators) who take mental health seriously, are capable of recognizing mental health symptoms in their patients, and are capable of treating or referring women.
These goals are hefty but achievable, if we’re willing to build bridges across organizational, disciplinary, and party lines. Perinatal mood disorders are among the most easily-treatable conditions around, once a woman gets professional help. We can prevent needless suffering and damage to families IF all of us who are women, care about women, and work with women agree to work together.
One more silver lining from this under-utilized opportunity on Capitol Hill: Sharon Brigner, an RN and senior director of clinical/medical policy for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), a trade association located in DC, shared good news about the 197 new medications currently under development to treat various psychiatric conditions.
Even more important was the "access issue" Sharon spoke to. For the millions of Americans without health insurance, getting recommended prescriptions filled is a huge problem. For individuals taking psychotropic medications, it is often responsible for them skipping their meds, discontinuing their meds indefinitely, or "rationing" medication - which may cause relapses and serious health consequences. I appreciated the brochure Sharon shared abou the Partnership for Prescription Assistance, which provides needed medications to people who don't have prescription insurance coverage and can't afford what their doctor prescribes. The PPARx program provides 2,500 medications free or "nearly free." To find out if you qualify, call their toll-free hotline: 1.888.4PPA.NOW (1.888.477.2669). There are Spanish-speaking counselors available on the hotline, too - Hablamos Espanol!
