Introduction

Objectives

Methods

Results Discussion

Acknowledgement

Support for the Supporters: A Case Study of MotherWoman Support Group Facilitators

Cherilyn D. Bean, BA & Mark Hart, Ed.D.University of Florida, Department of Behavioral Science and Community Health

This project was completed with thanks to MotherWoman and the University of Florida.

• Case study framework used due the rarity of support groups on this topic, wide variance in success rates, and the few number of existing groups.

• Semi-Structured Interviews• 12 open-ended questions• Interviews conducted by phone• Follows Social-Ecological Model

• Interviewed 2 facilitators in Lynn, MA• One from a successful group and one

from an unsuccessful group• Constant Comparative Method used in order to build

off other interviews and connect themes• Information from Readiness Assessments and

demographics of city utilized

MotherWoman is a non-profit organization in Hadley, Massachusetts dedicated to supporting and empowering mothers to create social and personal change through their Community-based Perinatal Support Model (CPSM). Their focus is tackling perinatal depression and anxiety by weaving together different resources to create safety nets of screening and treatment. Support groups for mothers are the hallmark of their model, which are led by community members who have been trained by MotherWoman. Their support groups encourage community, mindfulness, strength, and realities of motherhood. The need to improve the support groups are indicated by the following reasons:

The aim of the project is to determine what makes the perinatal depression support groups successful by:1. Identifying key differences between successful groups and

unsuccessful groups 2. Determining the significant barriers in organizing After these are achieved, the final step is to Identify short-term approaches and tactics to improve the support group’s attendance and recruitment.

Tell me about the stance for mental

health or maternal & child health from the

state of Massachusetts.

What events or moments have

stood out to you in the process of organizing the

support groups?How is

motherhood perceived?

Barriers Enabling Factors

Cultural Aspects

Weather Support from Co-workers

English Speakers

Poor collaboration

Positive relationship

with members

Higher education

Poverty Positive relationship

with facilitator

Perceived judgment

from peers

Poor parking Child care provided

Support from partners

High crime rates

Co-morbidities

Barriers Enabling Factors

Cultural Aspects

Weather Positive relationship

with members

Spanish Speakers

No child care services

Support from co-workers

Recent immigrants

Strained relationship

with facilitator

Provide incentives for attendance

Lower education

Poverty Co-morbidities

High crime rates

Greater sense of

community

• These are the only support groups in the area focusing on perinatal depression and anxiety

• The area studied are disproportionately affected by poverty, violence, immigration, and lack of education

• Perinatal depression is a risk factor for child behavior problems, more so than binge drinking,

smoking, or physical/emotional abuse (National Center for Children in Poverty, 2016). • The costs of missed days of work and lost of productivity

for a mother with perinatal depression amount to $7,200 per year (Wilder Research, 2015).

Table 1. Interview #1 coded themes. Table 2. Interview #2 coded themes.

Direct Quotes from Interviews• "...They call it 'Lynn the city of sin'...the poverty level is just

very high... a lot of addiction and a lot of mental health problems."

• "For agencies, there’s been excitement and support...but, uh, its been challenging at times to collaborate with other agencies to help them invest in sending moms, particularly the English-speaking support group.”

• "...A significant number of moms discuss with me individually is, uh, a lot of judgment and at least perceived judgment and criticism from other moms or other people in the community...”

• "...They walk everywhere! So if it’s winter...they just can’t come."

The interviews exhibit some of the same factors such as:• Weather • Poverty• Crime rates• Positive relationship for members • Support from co-workers • High co-morbidity rates The combination of poor collaboration with other agencies and perceived judgment from other mothers provide a significant barrier to attending the support groups. Meanwhile, the collaboration of incentives and sense of community have encouraged participants to attend the groups. This would suggest cultural competency to be a critical part of improving the group’s attendance. Future projects in this area should include: • Support group members. Interviews with them could provide new

insights into what motivates them to attend.• Increase amount of interviews. This would give better saturation, but

possibly not feasible. • Outreach. Create profitable relationships with other agencies to

increase referral and invest in mobile centers or technology to ease the burden of traveling during the winter months.

The areas of difference are: • Collaboration• Education• Perceptions• Values• Child care services• Incentives• Relationship between facilitators