Microcredential “Basic Principles in Perinatal Mental Health” as the main kickoff of the Project Matter

On the last April 9 and 12, the Kickoff of the pioneering project Matter – Perinatal Mental Health started of with two days of training sessions for Health and Social professionals, with the intention to train and raise awarness about the prevalence and importance of the impact of mental illness during pregnancy and postpartum.

The “Basic Principles in Perinatal Mental Health” Microcredential course from University of Évora, funded by the PRR, involved several lectures about the relevance about screening and intervention in perinatal mental health, all the mental illnesses that are prevalent in the perinatal phase, Psychopharmacology in pregnancy, postpartum and breastfeeding, the presentation of a Program that is being implemented with Preventive interventions in the period after childbirth – “Be a mom” Program – and the presentation of the technological tool that is going to be implemented in the project Matter. It also had space for practical sessions with the main objective to create multidisciplinary Working Groups constituted by doctors, nurses, psychologists, among other professionals in the area, to discuss practical cases and what intervention could be applied.

The program Matter have several packages that envolves training of Health and Social Professionals to interviene on the Perinatal Mental Health, invites pregnant women and those in the first year of postpartum to receive screening questionnaires directly via SMS on their cell phones, in order to allow and facilitate monitoring by their family’s doctor and nurse and the implementation of monthly multidisciplinary meetings with the Professionals who are involved in this Program.

This course was coordinated by the project P.I and CHRC researcher, psychiatrist Dr. Teresa Reis and had has trainer the Doctors Teresa Alves dos Reis, Denise Leite and Nurse Carla Santanita, also involved in the Matter’s Program.

Follow the offical Instagram account to learn more: @matter.perinatal

This program is inserted as project at the University of Évora and CHRC and has the support of the Calouste Gulbekian Foundation.