thousands of new mothers with post-natal depression are being left without support because of a woeful lack of care. nhs figures show 43 per cent of health boards provide no specialised maternal mental health service. and in those areas that do have a service, only a third meet the recommended standards. nhs figures show 43 per cent of health boards provide no specialised maternity service, and in those areas that do have a service, only a third meet the recommended standards an estimated 140,000 women giving birth each year are thought to suffer depression, anxiety or other mental health problems during pregnancy or in the months after birth. thousands never get the support they need, and suicide is a leading cause of death in expectant and new mothers. after years of insufficient funding, nhs england has finally agreed to act, pledging £365million over the next five years. officials today launch a £5million development fund for health boards to tackle the problem, which they hope will treat 30,000 new or expectant mothers a year. experts have long warned that post-natal depression had gone ignored. yet the cost of treating the problem is minimal, adding an estimated £83 to the £2,800 average cost of maternity care. left untreated, however, the cost rises to an average of £10,000 per woman. vicki nash, of mental health charity mind, welcomed the new funding, but added: ‘too many simply don’t get the right support in these vital months. this can lead to catastrophic consequences. ‘it is vitally important now that nhs england and clinical commissioning groups take this opportunity to work together and ensure that this money gets to the frontline fast.’ consultant psychiatrist dr alain gregoire, chairman of the maternal mental health alliance, said: ‘in many parts of the country there are no services at all, not even someone who can give some advice. it doesn’t cost a great deal, which makes it even more scandalous that they haven’t done anything before. i was convinced i might harm my three-month-old natalie ellis, 32, first noticed something was wrong when her son finn was born. ‘i started to feel down when i was breastfeeding, and thought it was a bit strange, but i didn’t think much of it,’ the mother from sheffield said. but when finn was three months old, she saw a news story about sexual abuse involving a baby. natalie ellis, 32, first noticed something was wrong when her son finn was born she said: ‘i started to think about it happening to finn. over the next few months i became obsessed with it, and then i turned against myself. ‘i became convinced that i might hurt my baby. obviously i had no intention of doing anything to him – but i became convinced i might.’ miss ellis became suicidal, convincing herself that finn would be safer if she were dead. but then she read online that obsessing about harming a baby was a symptom of post-natal depression - and could often include thoughts about sexual abuse. she had counselling and therapy, and was given medication. ‘the problem is that people just don’t talk about it,’ she said. ‘if i had known that it was an illness, it would never have got that bad - i thought it was just me. ‘we need much more awareness of the symptoms.’ miss ellis is now training to be a radiographer and is engaged to partner matt williams, 36. their son is now six years old and at primary school. advertisement ‘the government is seeming to wake up to this at last, but we need to see whether the nhs at a local level actually delivers change. ‘the human cost is huge. it has an impact on the women themselves, and on the whole family. the suffering is immense and can go on and on if it is not treated properly.’ nhs figures show that 91 of england’s 211 clinical commissioning groups – 43 per cent – have no specialist community perinatal mental health team. only 30 groups – 14 per cent of the total – meet the standards set by the royal college of psychiatry. dr giles berrisford, the nhs’s associate national clinical director for perinatal mental health, said: ‘we absolutely need to ensure that all women have the access to high quality perinatal mental health care and are committed to addressing current issues and variation. i am delighted that we can use this fund to build capacity in the community.’
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