National Institute for Health Care Management Foundation – Webinar: Identifying and Treating Maternal Depression to take place on December 9, 2009 at 1:00pm -2:30pm EST. Registration is free. Please click on the previous link for information and to register for this event.

According to NIHCM’s website, “This webinar will explore the prevalence of maternal depression and the current state of screening for perinatal and postpartum depression. It will include a discussion of the recent recommendations from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the American Psychiatric Association (APA) for the treatment of women with depression during pregnancy. The role of primary care providers in identifying and managing postpartum depression will also be discussed and a web-based training program to educate providers on screening, diagnosis, treatment and referral for postpartum depression will be shared. Finally, the session will highlight a current health plan program to identify and manage depression during pregnancy and coordinate care following a depression diagnosis to ensure healthy pregnancies and deliveries.”

Please pass this information on to anyone you may know that will benefit from this important webinar. I am planning on attending myself because the information to be discussed sounds absolutely fascinating. I am particularly interested in the discussion of the role of the primary are providers in identifying and managing postpartum depression as so many patients often first seek help from their primary caregivers rather than a specialist.