Background

Antenatal psychoeducational groups have so far not proven to be effective in reducing postnatal psychological morbidity. This may be due to lack of specificity in both intervention and targetted population. We have devised a screening tool and used it in an obstetric setting to identify women "at risk". This has allowed use to target the group who are most likely to benefit from an antenatal group cognitive behavioural counselling (CBC) intervention.

Aims

1) to describe the group cognitive behavioural counselling intervention;

2) to evaluate the efficacy of antenatal this group intervention at end the end of the groups and 6 weeks later using an open trial.

Results

Initial results on 40 women suggest that our psychosocial screening tool is identifying women with significant baseline distress (mean EPDS 13.1; SD 6.8). Using the EPDS, Rosenberg self-esteem scale and Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS) we found statistically significant improvement in most of these outcome criteria, which persisted to 6 weeks after the end of the intervention.

Satisfaction with the groups was high both for participants and group facilitators.

Conclusion

It would seem worth proceeding to a randomised controlled "pragmatic" trial if sufficiently large numbers can be recruited within such a clinical setting. The sensitivity and specificity of our screening tool remain to be evaluated.