Virtual Group Psychoeducational Discussions With Spanish-Speaking Mothers of Infants in Pediatric Primary Care

The current study is designed as an open/single-arm pilot of the intervention (no comparison arm for this initial/preliminary study, which is also being offered as a clinic service).

Participants include Spanish-speaking parents of infants (6 months or younger) attending a pediatric practice.

Parents are recruited via flyers posted at the clinic as well as via referral from pediatric providers and staff (who can obtain permission from family for research staff to discuss the study with the family at the visit and/or to contact the family at a later time).

After screening, oral consent is obtained over the phone or zoom, and baseline measures are collected over the phone or zoom, prior to attendance at the intervention session.

Intervention Sessions will be offered at regular intervals, on at least a monthly basis, via Zoom. The sessions (desiged to last 45-60 minutes), which will be observed by research staff with permission of participants, are co-facilitated by a bilingual clinic social worker and bilingual community health worker.

Sessions consist of the following content:

• Introduction and discussion of the purpose of the session/group; (2) Overview of services available at the clinic; (3) information about postpartum depression, including a five minute video testimonial followed by facilitated discussion about (a) prevalence and signs of postpartum depression, discussion of postpartum depression screening procedures and rationale for screening at the pediatric office, discussion of self-care and social support, and discussion of community resources (a list of resources are also mailed to the participants); (4) Discussion about insurance and health care for the infant and mother, including free/sliding scale clinics offering primary care for adults and rationale for engaging in one's own primary care in addition to pediatric health care for the infant.

After the session (within 2 weeks post-session) the research team collects post-session measures (see outcome measures) and conducts semi-structured interviews with participants.

6 months after the session, the research team will administer questionnaires over the phone assessing feedback about the intervention, physical and mental health services utilization, and post-intervention assessments (see outcome measures)

Inclusion criteria

• Parent participants will be eligible if the preferred healthcare language is Spanish, if they are the mother of an infant (<2 months of age) attending participating pediatric practice, and if she is not felt to have a contraindication to participation (e.g., condition in the parent that would preclude the ability to reasonably participate in a virtual group session) by clinic staff
• Clinic staff participants - facilitators of virtual groups

Exclusion criteria

• <16 years old, preferred healthcare language not Spanish, not planning to attend participating practice, clinic staff determines contraindication to participation in group discussion