Importance of Midwifery Care in the Prevention of Postpartum Depression

Abstract

Introduction. This article focuses on the importance of mid- wife care for women in the puerperium period for the preven- tion of postpartum depression. This care is mostly preventive; therefore, education occupies an important place. Using ap- propriate education and preventive strategies, many compli- cations or problems, such as postpartum depression, can be minimized or recognized in time. Methodology: The research method was acontrolled nursing experiment. The essence was to compare two different groups and find to what extent the care of amidwife contributes to the prevention of postpartum depression. The experimental group consisted of 100 women with the care of amidwife in the puer- perium period, where three visits took place during the puerperium period, throughout which the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale EPDS was used to assess mental health. The control group consisted of 100 women without the care of amidwife in the puerperium period. Aquestionnaire was sent to these women at the end of the sixth week, along with an EPDS scale. Results:Astatistically significant correlation was found be- tween the risk of postpartum depression and problems with neonatal care (p = 0.016). There was also astatistically signif- icant difference in the incidence of problems with newborn care according to the presence of amidwife (p = 0.005) and midwifery care in the area of breastfeeding (p = 0.049). The distribution of the results of the EPDS scale did not differ sta- tistically significantly (p = 0.775) depending on the care of amidwife. Conclusion:The results showed that the care of amidwife leads to the prevention of health complications in women in the puerperium period. The care of amidwife does not lead to the identification of postpartum depression more often, but symptoms are recognized earlier, and treatment is started. Amidwife's care can also reduce the predisposition to postpar- tum depression. Women attended to by a midwife showed fewer problems with breastfeeding or newborn care, which are two of the predictors of postpartum depression risks.