St. Joseph Hospital reflects on maternal mental health during pandemic

COVID-19 has made pregnancy and childbirth incredibly difficult to navigate, both physically and emotionally. As a result, it has been essential to transition integrated behavioral health services to a virtual format as quickly as possible.

We had, prior to COVID-19, started moving toward offering a virtual service option to reduce barriers to care. But the movement was slow because the necessary framework didn’t yet exist, including with regard to standards of care, billing practices and coverage. While these barriers are tangible, the “forced transition” to virtual care has unexpectedly served to uncover a less obvious barrier … our own preconceived notions about with whom, and under what circumstances, technology can be useful to facilitate behavioral health care, especially with pregnant and postpartum women.

In short, it has been humbling to contrast prior assumptions with our new experiences; a colleague and licensed clinical social worker, Sarah Rasche, notes her surprise about how efficiently a virtual visit can provide a snapshot of a patient’s reality, which she believes has contributed to more efficient rapport building and therapeutic solidarity. Additionally, while it is anecdotal at this time, the rate of “no shows” to virtual behavioral health visits has been almost non-existent … another piece of important information as we continually problem solve staffing and program sustainability.

During this unprecedented time, we encourage other maternal and behavioral health programs to consider the positives of switching to virtual care. For more information on behavioral health, visit AHA’s COVID-19 Stress and Coping Resources page.

Keri Hanson is a licensed clinical social worker and maternal mental health program coordinator at SCL Health/Saint Joseph Hospital in Denver, Colo.