Dr Elsie Abakisi, Senior Specialist at the Department of Psychiatry at the Tamale Teaching Hospital has called for vigorous intervention strategies to control the surging trend of depression among pregnant women and nursing mothers.

She said research showed that 26.8 percent pregnant women had Postpartum Depression (PPD), saying: “That is quite scary because it means 1 in every four women has the condition”.

Postpartum Depression (PPD), according to medicine is a type of depression that begins after birth and involves strong feelings of sadness, anxiety (worry) and tiredness (fatigue)

Dr Abakisi disclosed this in an interview with Sompa FM in Sunyani on the sidelines of a day’s training on the: “Strengthening community health systems to enhance integrated people-centred HIV, TB, SRH and MHPSS for vulnerable women and adolescents in Ghana” project.

The BasicNeeds-Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organisation in collaboration with the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG), Centre for People’s Empowerment and Rights Initiatives (CPRI) and the Mental Health Society of Ghana (MEHSOG) is implementing the project.
It was attended by heads of health facilities, Directors of Health as well as other key staff of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) in the Bono Region.

Dr Abakisi mentioned recurring intimate partner violence and poverty as the common risk factors of the PPD, saying women who had other underlying conditions like HIV and AIDS as well as Tuberculosis (TB) were also prone to the condition.

Throwing more light on the project, Mr Dokurugu Yahaya, the Head of Programmes, BasicNeeds-Ghana said the project was being implemented in seven regions in 27 communities spread across 14 districts and municipalities nationwide.
Sompaonline.com/K.Peprah