Perceptions of RN associated with screening for PPD - Dissertation Example

It has been found that postpartum depression not only has both short- and long-term consequences for the mother but also for her newborn child and thus its timely recognition, diagnosis and treatment is vital (Field, 2010). Statistics reveal that each year, approximately 400,000 infants are born to depressed mothers who are thus, at a risk of having adverse emotional, behavioral and physical health outcomes (Joy, 2011). As stated by Beck (2002), postpartum depression is “a dangerous thief that robs mothers of the love and happiness they expected to feel toward their newborn babies (Beck, 2002, p. 453)”. Studies have revealed that in short term, the mothering practices that become compromised due to the detrimental effects of PPD on the mother’s attitude towards the child include breastfeeding practices, sleep routines, visits to the well child clinic and follow-ups for vaccinations, and overall safety practices (Field, 2010).

Moreover, in long-term, PPD impairs conducive interactions between the mother and the child, negatively impacts nurturance and leads to poor parenting all of which contribute towards negative outcomes for the child, including and not limited to, poorer cognitive development, greater incidence of behavioral issues (such as antisocial and risk taking behaviors) and constrained social interactions on the part of the child such as less sociability (Beck, 2002; Field, 2010). Since this disorder is so common and has such serious and long lasting consequences, it is imperative that appropriate interventions be undertaken in a timely manner in order to prevent the occurrence of the aforementioned negative outcomes.

Moreover, as pointed out before, since culture is an important determinant in the etiology of PPD, and postpartum depression has been defined as a “culture-bound syndrome” (Zubaran, Schumacher, Roxo, & Foresti, 2010) it is important for health care professionals to be aware of the role of culture in the causation of PPD and the management, including both diagnosis and treatment, of this disorder should be tailored using a transcultural approach. It has been elucidated that nurses play a significant role in the management of PPD, since they are involved in both screening the women for PPD and also in its treatment, including the provision of counseling services and appropriate referral services when required (Driscoll, 2006).

In order to facilitate the provision of these services, nurses need to be culturally sensitive and should approach each woman keeping in mind her cultural, racial and ethnic background and offer culturally appropriate solutions accordingly (Callister, Beckstrand, & Corbett, 2010). Till date most of the literature centered around postpartum depression is predominantly quantitative in nature and the few qualitative studies that do exist focus on elucidating the role of culture in the etiology and causation of PPD.

There is a paucity of studies focusing on determining the nurses’ experiences and perceptions in providing care for women suffering from postpartum depression, which is pertinent in this setting as nurses are the primary caregivers for patients suffering from postpartum depression. Moreover, there is also an acute shortage of studies examining the different culture appropriate solut