Topic: Perinatal Depressive Disorders
This unit covers the epidemiology, etiology, pathophysiology, and treatment of depressive disorders in pregnancy and postpartum, with an emphasis on learning to read the literature concerning risks of untreated illness vs. risks of medication. The self-study section has four short videos on important statistical concepts, which will also be useful for other units of the curriculum. Classroom activities include a “risk-risk” conversation between a patient and perinatal psychiatrist (including a video) and two additional case conferences. Progressive case conferences follow one patient through different stages OR present a second case to which learners must apply lessons learned from the first case. Integrative case conferences ask learners to integrate multiple perspectives into their understanding of the patient’s situation. The media module concerns media misinterpretations of the scientific literature about antidepressant safety in pregnancy.
The recommended order of modules is:
Self-Study: Short Statistical Videos
Classroom: Risk-Risk Module
Classroom: Progressive Case Conference – includes pre-learning videos
Classroom: Integrative Case Conference
Media Module
Objectives
Self-Study
Classroom
This Perinatal Depression module focuses on how to formulate and create a treatment plan for a patient with antenatal depression. Learners will describe the risks associated with both untreated depression and antidepressants in pregnancy and postpartum, and will learn how to conduct a risk-risk conversation with patients.
Supplemental Video
This module examines the epidemiology, risk factors, and etiology of antenatal and postpartum depression. Learners will also be introduced to the screening and diagnosis of perinatal depression, will learn about the impact of depression on pregnancy (including obstetric and psychiatric outcomes), and will understand the unique vulnerability of the postpartum period.
Supplemental Videos
This module focuses on the reading and interpretation of the perinatal literature, in both professional and lay media. Learners will demonstrate the ability to analyze reproductive psychiatry issues as portrayed by the lay media, how to locate and analyze the scientific literature relevant to the issues raised by the lay media, and how to convey the patients accurate and clinical relevant information about “hot topics” in the lay media.