Keeping Parent, Child, and Relationship in Mind: Clinical Effectiveness of a Trauma-informed, Multigenerational, Attachment-Based, Mother-Baby Partial Hospital Program in an Urban Safety Net Hospital

Kim, Helen G.; Erickson, Nora L.; Flynn, Jessica M.

doi:10.1007/s10995-021-03221-4

Published: 24 August 2021

Keeping Parent, Child, and Relationship in Mind: Clinical Effectiveness of a Trauma-informed, Multigenerational, Attachment-Based, Mother-Baby Partial Hospital Program in an Urban Safety Net Hospital

Maternal and Child Health Journal volume 25, pages 1776–1786 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

Purpose

The Hennepin Healthcare Mother-Baby Day Hospital is a partial hospital program for pregnant and postpartum women with moderate to severe psychiatric illness. Based in an urban safety net hospital, the Day Hospital provides trauma-informed, multigenerational, group-based therapy and psychiatric care. This report describes the program and preliminary data regarding maternal mental health and functioning at treatment entry and discharge.

Methods

Data include information on pregnant and postpartum women who were admitted to the Day Hospital between April 2013 and September 2019 and completed at least 4 days of treatment. We describe patient demographics and changes in mental health and maternal functioning.

Results

328 women consented to participation in research, representing 364 unique admissions. Primary diagnoses included major depression (55.6%; n = 202); generalized anxiety (36.4%; n = 132); bipolar spectrum (28%; n = 102); and trauma-related disorders (20.6%; n = 75). Patients reported significant improvements (p < 0.001) in self-report scales assessing depression, anxiety, and maternal functioning.

Conclusions

A mother-baby day hospital based in an urban safety net hospital is effective in improving mental health and parenting functioning in perinatal women with moderate to severe psychiatric illness. The high acuity and prevalence of comorbid depression, anxiety, bipolar spectrum, and trauma-related disorders support the need for trauma-informed, multigenerational approaches that address perinatal mental health and attachment-based parenting support.

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Data availability

The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are not publicly available but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This research was partly funded by the Lynne and Andrew Redleaf Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

Department of Psychiatry, and Redleaf Center for Family Healing, Hennepin Healthcare, 701 Park Avenue S, Minneapolis, MN, 55404, USA
Helen G. Kim, Nora L. Erickson & Jessica M. Flynn

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Helen G. Kim
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Nora L. Erickson
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Jessica M. Flynn
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection were performed by all authors. Data analysis was performed by Nora L. Erickson, PhD and Helen G. Kim, MD. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Helen G. Kim, MD and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Helen G. Kim.

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Conflicts of interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest or competing interests.

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the appropriate Institutional Review Board at Hennepin Heathcare Research Institute and was performed in accordance with the ethical standards as laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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All research participants gave informed consent to have their data included for analysis.

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All research participants gave informed consent to have their data included for research publication.

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Kim, H.G., Erickson, N.L. & Flynn, J.M. Keeping Parent, Child, and Relationship in Mind: Clinical Effectiveness of a Trauma-informed, Multigenerational, Attachment-Based, Mother-Baby Partial Hospital Program in an Urban Safety Net Hospital. Matern Child Health J 25, 1776–1786 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-021-03221-4

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Accepted: 07 August 2021
Published: 24 August 2021
Issue Date: November 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-021-03221-4

Keywords

Perinatal psychiatric illness
Partial hospital program
Treatment
Multigeneration