Madre, hay esperanzaŽ CD: An effective postpartum depression health communication tool for Latina women

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) is a significant problem for Latina women. As part of a PPD awareness health communication campaign, Latino community partners and the Perinatal Foundation developed the Madre, hay esperanzaŽ CD. The CD consists of a novela, or soap opera, about a new mother with PPD, a personal story, Latino music, signs of PPD, how to seek help, and messages of hope to reduce the stigma of depression. Methods: The CD was evaluated using pre and post surveys measuring changes in knowledge and awareness of PPD and health-promoting behavior after listening to the CD. Differences between pre and post survey means were analyzed using paired t-tests. Results: Fifty-two Dane County Latino community members participated in the evaluation. Statistically significant differences (p≤0.05) between pre and post surveys were reported for (1) increased awareness of PPD, (2) increased knowledge of anxiety and overwhelming fatigue as signs of depression, and (3) increased awareness of the high prevalence of depression after birth. Fifty-eight percent of participants said that they spoke to someone about PPD after listening to the CD. Greater than 95% of participants agreed that (1) the CD helped them understand more about PPD and (2) it was a good way to inform the Latino community about PPD. Conclusions: The Madre, hay esperanzaŽ CD is an effective health communication tool for increasing awareness and knowledge and decreasing stigma of PPD in Spanish-speaking populations. Further work is needed to determine if the CD is effective in other Wisconsin and national Latino communities.