Contraception and Mental Health: Are we Doing Enough?

The WHO Sustainable development goals (SDGs) outline the necessity to ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive healthcare services, including family planning information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes. Family planning and contraception knowledge is integral to maintaining or improving relationships for well-being. Whilst contraceptive knowledge is undoubtedly important for all reproductive-aged people, it is of increased importance for women with mental health conditions who are considered a "doubly disadvantaged" group due to their gender and diagnosis.

Women can experience significant reproductive health problems including reduced fertility due to pharmacology use, high rates of unplanned pregnancies, safeguarding processes and increased rate of malformations in their offspring.

NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) guidelines recommend discussing with women of childbearing potential who have or had mental health problems the use of contraception and any plans of pregnancy, how pregnancy and childbirth might affect a mental health problem and how mental health problem and its treatment might affect the women, the foetus or baby. Although international and national legislation clearly acknowledges equal rights for women with disabilities with regards to family planning, they continue to face challenges in accessing these SRH.

Women who experience severe and persistent mental health issues are more likely to experience unplanned pregnancy, maybe likely to engage in sexual risk taking behaviour and are at a higher risk of sexually transmitted diseases. A recent systematic review estimates that in the UK, at any given time, 9-10% of women will be parents with mental disorder. There are well-established links between parental mental disorder and poor outcomes in children, although not all children are at risk. Throughout the period of foetal development, infancy and toddlerhood the brain of a baby is growing and developing.) These first 1001 days are critical because of optimal brain development and also gives the baby the best possible start in life. People who lack nurture from one or more caring adults in the first 1001 days of their lives achieve less in education and in the world of work; are more likely to behave anti-socially, and are less healthy, physically as well as mentally, than individuals who were given a better start. Furthermore, the harm done to them is likely to be perpetuated in an inter-generational cycle when they have children of their own .

The investigators also looked at some more scientific evidence from the point of view of mental health professionals. Mental health professionals are poor at collecting information regarding the parenting status of their patients and tend not to enquire about children's welfare and needs. In addition, mental health professionals report patients' lack of insight regarding the illness and its impact on children, insufficient knowledge and skills and concerns that discussing parenting and child-related issues might impair the relationship they have with their patient. A research study has found that 16% of childbearing age women were prescribed teratogens. For women with mental health conditions who want to avoid unintended pregnancy, effective contraceptive use can be an important strategy to maintain and even improve health and wellbeing. Barriers in the provision of appropriate reproductive advice includes difficulties in determining "best interests", feeling ill-equipped to discuss sexual and reproductive health due to perceived boundaries and embarrassment, and ethical challenges.

Study Design An observational quantitative cross-sectional design study will be utilised. The investigators will not intervene in any way but simply record the answers to questionnaire of the study participants. All the measurements for the participants will be obtained at a single point in time, although recruitment may take place across a longer period. This is the most suitable method for this study as it minimises loss to follow up, obtrusiveness and response bias and will allow for future replicability and comparisons across other NHS Trusts.

Participants / Population This will be a two-armed study sampling service user of childbearing age receiving SABP mental health care services and mental health care professionals. The study will seek to recruit patients from inpatient units and community mental health teams from Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (SABP) and Mental health care professionals from the Trust.