Postnatal depression: Can visual media and dramatisation of a young woman's experiences, enable student health care professionals develop knowledge to enhance clinical practice skills?

IntroductionSince the presentation of the symptoms of postnatal depression (PND) can vary; healthcare professionals must receive the appropriate level of training to develop the knowledge required for the effective assessment and referral of women. Yet, healthcare professionals may have limited knowledge in perinatal mental health and students may lack practice opportunities to develop the knowledge and clinical skills. For these reasons, the use of alternative learning resources within perinatal mental health education is vital.ObjectivesTo explore the use of visual media in perinatal mental health education.AimsAgainst the background of increasing concerns about the ability of professionals to assess women with PND, this paper will consider how using dramatisation as a teaching approach can enable students to develop their knowledge and guide clinical skill development.MethodsThree separate groups of senior student midwives and health visitors were asked to evaluate a dramatisation developed from women's lived experience of PND. Pre and post verbal evaluation of the drama were undertaken with the use of focus groups guided by semi-structured questions. Ethical approval was granted by the university.ResultsFollowing thematic analysis three issues were identified:–the role of the healthcare professional;–improvements needed in care;–issues of education and training.ConclusionsAgainst the background of limited placement experience and opportunity for assessment of PND, the use of visual media can improve student healthcare professionals’ learning; with the use of structured facilitation, there is a great potential for multidisciplinary learning.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.