Screening for postpartum depression in a rural community

Postpartum depression is a serious mental health issue affecting as many as 10-15% of families during the postpartum period. The current study discusses implementation of a screening protocol for postpartum depression in a rural community health setting with a sample of 498 primarily minority women utilizing the Postpartum Depression Screening Scale. Results indicate that 22.5% of the sample population demonstrate some symptoms of postpartum depression, with Hispanic women demonstrating less symptoms than other minority groups. Results also indicate that variables such as race, feeding method and history of depression impact scale scores.