Pathways | BC Reproductive Mental Health Program

BC Reproductive Mental Health Program

Healthcare Providers, Mental Health - Adult & Senior, and Pregnancy Care

Provided by BC Children's Hospital (BCCH)

Provide care to women and their families who are dealing with mental health challenges or disorders and emotional difficulties related to the reproductive life cycle.

The BC Reproductive Mental Health Program is part of BC Children's Hospital, an agency of the Provincial Health Services Authority.
The BC Reproductive Mental Health Program is a team of specialized and multidisciplinary professionals. Together, the team has many years of clinical and research experience working with women and their families who are dealing with mental health challenges or disorders and emotional difficulties related to the reproductive life cycle. In particular, we assess and treat women who are pregnant, postpartum, dealing with pregnancy loss, infertility and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).
Women can find it difficult to seek help because of:

The stigma of mental health challenges and disorders
Family, friends and society’s expectations of happiness at the birth of a baby.
Concern about the effects of treatment.

The BC Reproductive Mental Health Program is committed to providing expert and specialized information, services and resources to this group of women across the whole of BC, to their partners and families and also to the professionals that work with them so that mental health challenges and disorders can be recognized and early treatment can be offered.

We can offer:

Help from a specialized professional
Individual, couples or group psychotherapy
Resources for women, their partners and families
Resources for professionals
Training opportunities for professionals
Educational events

Patients must be 19 years of age or older, can be seen up until one year postpartum and need a referral from a physician or midwife to access the program’s clinical services. The program consists of a specialized multidisciplinary team (Psychiatrists, Nurse Clinicians, Counsellors, Social workers, and Dieticians) with many years of clinical and research experience in mental health related to the reproductive life cycle.

The majority of patients seen are referred for treatment of major depressive disorder or anxiety disorder in pregnancy and postpartum. The clinical services provided include individual or group psychological treatment and medication treatment if indicated. The program also develops educational resources for both patients and healthcare providers that are available online. On the website, individuals can access two CBT-based self-care guides for women and healthcare providers. One is called “Coping with Depression during Pregnancy and Following the Birth.” The other is entitled “Coping with Anxiety during Pregnancy and Following the Birth.”