David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
UW Study: Most Mothers Don't Get Adequate Depression Treatment
Madison, Wisconsin
10/19/2009
Most mothers with depression in the United States do not receive adequate treatment for their disease, according to a new study at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
And the problem is especially pronounced among working mothers, those who are uninsured, and minority mothers.
Whitney P. Witt, PhD, MPH, and colleagues examined data from a nationally representative sample of mothers with depression, looking at the role of socio-demographic and health characteristics.
More than 65 percent of mothers did not receive adequate treatment for their depression, with black, Hispanic and other minority mothers being among the least likely to receive adequate treatment.
Strikingly, those with insurance were more than three times more likely to receive adequate treatment, compared to mothers without health insurance.
"Health insurance facilitates access to adequate treatment for maternal depression. Expanding health insurance coverage to mothers with depression is a critical step in helping them get the care that they need," says Witt, assistant professor of population health sciences at UW-Madison.
The paper, Access to Adequate Outpatient Depression Care for Mothers in the USA: A National Representative Population-Based Study, was published in the Journal of Behavioral Health Services and Research today. The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Academic Pediatrics Association.
The study examined data on 2,130 mothers with depression. Information was collected between 1996 and 2005 as part of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). Information on the use of anti-depression-related prescriptions and psychotherapy or counseling was used to determine whether a mother's treatment met evidence-based guidelines.
Working mothers were less likely to receive adequate treatment for their depression. Kristin Litzelman, a UW Population Health Sciences doctoral student and co-author of the study, says that long work hours may make it difficult for mothers to find the time to seek treatment. The workplace could therefore be an important setting for depression intervention.
"Services like employee assistance programs can help these mothers get screened and treated, even if they are unable to visit a provider or a mental health professional in the health care setting," Litzelman says. "Since healthy employees are productive employees, it's often a win-win for employers to offer benefits that support employee mental health."
Study findings highlight that racial, ethnic and educational disparities exist in the treatment of maternal depression. Physician assistant Abiola Keller, a doctoral student and study co-author, says health care providers need to understand these barriers to treatment in order to intervene and improve the mental health of mothers.
"Future research will need to explore why these differences exist and how we can eliminate these disparities," Keller says. "In the meantime, clinicians should pay particular attention to the subpopulations that may not be getting the care they need."
Maternal depression has a significant impact on the entire family. Mothers' untreated depression can have particularly negative effects on the health and well-being of their children. Witt says that interventions which help all mothers receive adequate depression treatment will therefore improve the long-term health of the entire family.
Madison, Wisconsin
10/19/2009
Most mothers with depression in the United States do not receive adequate treatment for their disease, according to a new study at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
And the problem is especially pronounced among working mothers, those who are uninsured, and minority mothers.
Whitney P. Witt, PhD, MPH, and colleagues examined data from a nationally representative sample of mothers with depression, looking at the role of socio-demographic and health characteristics.
More than 65 percent of mothers did not receive adequate treatment for their depression, with black, Hispanic and other minority mothers being among the least likely to receive adequate treatment.
Strikingly, those with insurance were more than three times more likely to receive adequate treatment, compared to mothers without health insurance.
"Health insurance facilitates access to adequate treatment for maternal depression. Expanding health insurance coverage to mothers with depression is a critical step in helping them get the care that they need," says Witt, assistant professor of population health sciences at UW-Madison.
The paper, Access to Adequate Outpatient Depression Care for Mothers in the USA: A National Representative Population-Based Study, was published in the Journal of Behavioral Health Services and Research today. The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Academic Pediatrics Association.
The study examined data on 2,130 mothers with depression. Information was collected between 1996 and 2005 as part of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). Information on the use of anti-depression-related prescriptions and psychotherapy or counseling was used to determine whether a mother's treatment met evidence-based guidelines.
Working mothers were less likely to receive adequate treatment for their depression. Kristin Litzelman, a UW Population Health Sciences doctoral student and co-author of the study, says that long work hours may make it difficult for mothers to find the time to seek treatment. The workplace could therefore be an important setting for depression intervention.
"Services like employee assistance programs can help these mothers get screened and treated, even if they are unable to visit a provider or a mental health professional in the health care setting," Litzelman says. "Since healthy employees are productive employees, it's often a win-win for employers to offer benefits that support employee mental health."
Study findings highlight that racial, ethnic and educational disparities exist in the treatment of maternal depression. Physician assistant Abiola Keller, a doctoral student and study co-author, says health care providers need to understand these barriers to treatment in order to intervene and improve the mental health of mothers.
"Future research will need to explore why these differences exist and how we can eliminate these disparities," Keller says. "In the meantime, clinicians should pay particular attention to the subpopulations that may not be getting the care they need."
Maternal depression has a significant impact on the entire family. Mothers' untreated depression can have particularly negative effects on the health and well-being of their children. Witt says that interventions which help all mothers receive adequate depression treatment will therefore improve the long-term health of the entire family.
