Initiative to strengthen perinatal mental healthcare to be piloted in Villupuram district

Doctors from the Institute of Mental Health said that globally, studies indicate that the prevalence of antenatal depression ranges from 10% to 20%. | Photo Credit: Getty Images Tamil Nadu is preparing to pilot an initiative to strengthen perinatal mental healthcare by making screening available at the primary healthcare level. As a part of the initiative, Village Health Nurses (VHNs) and medical officers are being trained to screen pregnant women for mental health problems, particularly depression, during the antenatal and postnatal periods and facilitate timely and appropriate care.The ‘Thai Manam’ project is set to be piloted, with VHNs and medical officers in four blocks of Villupuram district — Kanai, Koliyanur, Vallam, and Mugaiyur — who are undergoing training as part of a collaborative initiative involving the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Epidemiology, and the Directorate of Public Health (DPH) and Preventive Medicine.IMH doctors said globally, studies indicate that the prevalence of antenatal depression ranges from 10% to 20%. “The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) is used to assess both during antenatal and postnatal periods. Screening can help identify depression predominantly. VHNs take up the first level of screening for pregnant women. Using a cut-off score for EPDS, they will refer the pregnant woman first to the medical officer of the respective primary health centre (PHC),” a senior doctor said.The medical officer will further verify and categorise the women as having mild, moderate, or severe risk. Mild risk means a score of less than 10, while moderate risk falls from 10 to 12 and high is above 13. Women with moderate risk are counselled and advised lifestyle changes and are followed up with closely, while those with high risk are referred to the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP) team, he said.“However, if a pregnant woman scores low on EPDS, but if they answer the tenth question on self-harm raising a potential risk, she is immediately referred to the medical officer or DMHP team,” he clarified. Currently, pregnant women are followed up by the VHNs for 42 days after delivery. They will have home visits for these six weeks when they will be screened for symptoms of depression, he said.Health officials said the DPH had already incorporated the EPDS on the Pregnancy and Infant Cohort Monitoring and Evaluation (PICME) portal. The staff — primarily 12,000 VHNs — were being trained in asking the 10 questions in Tamil to determine the mental status of pregnant women, a few questions during antenatal period, and a few questions in the postnatal period. They will be classified based on their answers and referred for further screening if the algorithm finds them to be at high risk.IMH is using this platform for taking the initiative forward, an official said, adding: “Our VHNs have to start entering the data for EPDS assessment on the PICME portal. Next, we are working on linking the psychiatrist onto the platform.” Published - November 02, 2026 09:27 pm IST