Postpartum depression as a public health issue among Caribbean immigrant women

ABSTRACT

This exploratory case study of postpartum depression (PPD) among Caribbean women in New York City metropolitan area aims to employ multiple approaches to gather information from varying sources that will facilitate understanding of the complexities that contributes to postpartum depression within this population. The study will contribute to the detection and management of postpartum depression within the mental, medical, and public health arena. The study will employ Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Model as its framework.

A five months investigation will be conducted utilizing a women's employment and GED preparation program located at the Bronx Community College, New York. This program will provide representation from New York's five boroughs and Caribbean immigrant communities. Participants will be recruited through letter mailings and flyers by the principal investigator, potential participants, and other services providers. One hundred and eighty participants will be selected from the overall respondents based on the study's eligibility requirements. The data collection process will be in the forms of focus groups and in-depth interviews. The focus groups will be held over a six months period. The principal investigator, program's social worker, and health instructors will conduct the focus groups.

The screening tools to be utilized within the postpartum depression focus groups will be the Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and an additional screening tool created by the researcher. This tool will be able to address other imperative data that might exist and is not addressed by the EPDS.