Ghana has launched a landmark Maternal Mental Health Policy (MMHP) aimed at improving the wellbeing of mothers and families by addressing the often-overlooked psychological challenges faced by women during pregnancy and after childbirth.

Under the auspices of the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service, the Maternal Mental Health Policy, first of its kind in Ghana’s public health system focuses on a roadmap integrate mental health care into maternal and child health services nationwide.

The newly commissioned framework is seen by stakeholders as a timely intervention to address the protracted systemic challenges confronting maternal healthcare delivery that affect thousands of Ghanaian women each year.

Ranging from postpartum depression, anxiety, and other health disorders, studies have shown that between 10 to 20 percent of women in low- and middle-income countries experience some form of mental health condition during pregnancy or within the first year after childbirth. Howver, these conditions remain largely underdiagnosed in Ghana.

“These conditions not only affect mothers but also have long-term consequences on child development, family stability, and national productivity,” said Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Prof. Samuel Kaba Akoriyae during the launch.

The novel Maternal Mental Health Policy has provides in details a roadmap to tackle the following:

•Integrate mental health screening into antenatal and postnatal care services.

•Train healthcare workers to detect and manage maternal mental health conditions.

•Strengthen referral systems for specialized psychiatric care.

•Raise public awareness to reduce stigma and promote early help-seeking.

•Expand community-based support systems, including counseling and peer groups.

Mental health in some instances in Ghana has been linked to superstitious causes coupled with societal pressures which creates complexities and hurdles to the attempts by health authorities to create awareness to the critical need to prioritise mental wellbeing.

With the advent of this policy, stakeholders are expected to align efforts towards Ghana’s broader mental health agenda which has been advocating for increased investment and reforms in mental health care.