Beating the Blues Before Birth

The proposed study aims to fill this gap by evaluating a program we have developed but not yet systematically evaluated as a treatment for AND: Beating the Blues before Birth (BBB). BBB has been adapted for use during pregnancy from Milgrom, Martin and Negri’s [Treating Postnatal Depression. A Psychological Approach for Health Care Practitioners, Wiley, 1999], cognitive-behavioural treatment program for PND. Evidence for the effectiveness of the PND program is reported in a published randomised controlled trial.

The aim of this study is to examine in a randomized controlled trial whether our Beating the Blues before Birth (BBB) program is an effective treatment for Antenatal Depression and will result in clinically significant increases in well-being as evidenced by decreases in depression, anxiety and health services accessed, as well as increases in utilisation of social supports. Women receiving the BBB program will be compared to women in a routine primary care condition, at post-treatment and at 6 month follow-up.

With the Federal Government’s recent funding of a National Framework for universal screening of women perinatally for depression, an increased need will exist for specialised treatments for AND. An evaluated treatment could be integrated into routine antenatal practices nationally as a model pathway to care, with relevance to health care practitioners, key bodies such as beyondblue, major maternity hospitals and services, and government agencies to inform and influence policy.