Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Feasibility And Acceptability Of A Community Health Worker Administered Behavioral Activation Intervention For Postpartum Depression: A Single Arm Pilot Study From India, Amy Szajna, Bheemsain Tekkalaki, Veereshkumar Nandagaon, Gururaj Udapi, Manjunath Sogalad, Shweta Dandagi, Uma Kole, Sushma Patil, Sudha Raddi, Vanessa Short, Patricia Kelly

College of Nursing Faculty Papers & Presentations

INTRODUCTION: Women in India experience high rates of postpartum depression (PPD), with minimal availability of screening or treatment. India has an extensive network of community health workers, known as accredited social health activists (ASHAs). While they are knowledgeable about most maternal-child health problems, they have minimal knowledge about PPD. We trained ASHAs to deliver a simple home-based intervention, behavioral activation (BA), which involves individuals in activities that are sources of positive reinforcement to counter depression. The research questions guiding this study were as follows: 1) What are the feasibility and acceptability of ASHAs screening for and delivering a brief behavioral …