© 2021 Copyright: Bournemouth University
Untreated perinatal mental illnesses have a wide range of effects on the mental and physical health of women, their children, partners and significant others, meaning insufficient support is a major public health concern.
They are also one of the leading causes of death for women during pregnancy and the year after birth.
Perinatal mental illness can cause intense, debilitating, isolating and often frightening suffering for women.
Perinatal mental illness can have a long-term impact on a woman’s self-esteem and relationships with partners and family members.
Perinatal mental illness can have an adverse impact on the interaction between a mother and her baby, affecting the child’s emotional, social and cognitive development.
In severe cases, perinatal mental illness can be life-threatening: suicide is one of the leading causes of death for women in the UK during the perinatal period.
The economic cost to society of not effectively treating perinatal mental illness far outweighs the cost of providing appropriate services. According to the 2014 report, ‘The Costs of Perinatal Mental Health Problems’ by the London School of Economics and the Centre for Mental Health, untreated perinatal mental illness carries a total long-term cost to society of about £8.1 billion for each one-year cohort of births in the UK. Of these 28% of costs relate to the mother, 72% relates to the child.
If perinatal mental health problems were identified and treated quickly and effectively, all of these serious and often life-changing human and economic costs could be avoided.
In comparison, it would cost only an extra £280 million a year to bring the whole pathway of perinatal mental health care up to the level and standards recommended in national guidance.
Here’s a link to the 2014 London School of Economics report summary on ‘The costs of perinatal mental health problems.’
© 2021 Copyright: Bournemouth University