Despite well documented adverse outcomes related to untreated postpartum depression, many women face difficulty accessing care. A woman’s experience of conflict related to appraising treatment options that align with both her needs and her values can contribute to delays or barriers to seeking and accessing effective treatment. Shared decision making is the cornerstone of a collaborative patient-provider relationship and has been shown to decrease patient’s experience of decisional conflict. This cross-sectional web-based survey examined the relationship between shared decision making and decisional conflict for postpartum women experiencing depressive symptoms at an urban counseling center in Nashville, TN. Data were collected between October and December 2019. Decisional conflict was measured using the Decisional Conflict Scale. Perception of shared decision making was measured using the Shared Decision-Making Questionnaire (SDMQ-9). A total of 169 women completed the online survey. Of the 121 women who reported symptoms of postpartum depression, less than half were currently engaged in care for PPD, Of the 48 women who were engaged in care, there was a significant negative correlation between shared decision making and decisional conflict, p\u3c.05, Pearson’s r = -.287. Results of this study confirm finding of existing research that many women who are experiencing symptoms of PPD are not engaging in care. However, when women engage in care that reflects the principles of shared decision-making, they experience less decisional conflict. Providers who practice shared decision making in their care of women with postpartum depression may improve treatment engagement as well as myriad health outcomes for women and children.
Keywords: Postpartum Depression, Women, Decisional Conflict, Shared Decision Makin
