Calls for units to help UAE’s new mothers with postnatal depression

Many women have such severe postnatal depression that they need hospitalisation, and as hospitals in UAE do not have mum and baby units, the mothers are separated from their infants.

ABU DHABI // Calls have been made for hospital units to be set up for women who are suffering from postnatal depression.

Many women have such severe postnatal depression (PND) that they need care in hospital, but as hospitals in UAE do not have mother and baby units, they can be separated from their infants.

In the West, such units are commonplace, allowing mothers to remain with their babies during treatment. This can help avoid the potential harmful effects of separating the baby from the mother.

Andrea Allen, a 42-year-old British mother who suffered from postnatal depression seven years ago, said: “We need a good, properly set up, well managed mother and baby unit in the UAE.

“I believe I did need hospital care. However, as no such facility is available, I was given a prescription and sent on my way. I would have benefited greatly from the support that would have been available at a mother and baby unit.”

The Dubai resident said: “As this type of care wasn’t an option, the doctors merely medicated me. Sadly, I then attempted suicide nine months later.”

But she overcame her illness. “I am one of the lucky ones. Many women are still battling every day, and without the support they so gravely need.”

Ms Allen said many women do not have mental health cover in their insurance policies, and do without the support they need.

Dr Yaseen Aslam, psychiatrist and director at The Lighthouse Arabia in Dubai, a community mental health clinic, said having such a unit, would “prevent the mother being separated from the baby, and in these situations we need to try to minimise the harm and psychological distress that may occur”.

Separating the mother from her infant increases her level of stress and affects the bonding between her and the baby, said the psychiatrist. “In the two years I have been here, I have come across several cases of women requiring hospitalisation. If there was a facility, I would definitely be referring more women,” he said.

The psychiatrist said many women with postnatal depression feel extremely guilty that they are not able to fulfil their motherly duties.

“Being separated or unable to breastfeed just compounds that feeling of guilt. There are studies which link PND to a range of behavioural, emotional, psychological disorders in children.

“It can affect the attachment process and children become very insecure and they are not able to develop a close bond with their care giver,” he said.

Dr Padmaraju Varrey, a neuro-psychiatrist at NMC Specialty Hospital, believed not many women suffering from PND needed hospitalisation as many cases go unreported.

“Only one out of five people suffering from PND seek help. Only 20 to 30 per cent of these will need hospitalisation. They may not be aware, or the stigma is holding them back. They may also believe that psychiatry medicines are not good for them as they are nursing,” said Dr Varrey. “If the baby is denied bonding and nursing, it has a definite effect. The child can feel isolated or suffer from separation anxiety,” said Dr Varrey.

Dr Gowri Ramanathan, head of obstetrics and gynaecology at Danat Al Emarat Hospital for Women and Children, said that a mother and baby unit setting was not available in the country because there had not been a need for it.

The doctor said that Emiratis have a support system, although there might be a gap in the support for expatriates.

“We only see the mums immediately after the delivery and we offer support in the immediate post-partum period,” she said.

According to some statistics, one in five women in UAE suffer from postnatal depression, while in the UK and US the number stands at about one in 10.