A pilot project on parental mental health services provided during and after pregnancy was launched on Friday morning.
The project will include the evaluation of the mental health of the expecting parents and their relational wellbeing, which will be carried out both prior to delivery and post-pregnancy.
The routine screening for parents will begin in 2021 and is part of the Positive Parenting National Strategy Policy 2016 to 2024.
During the launch, Positive Parenting Task Force chair Ruth Sciberras explained that the project will provide support and guidance to those parents who are facing anxiety or depression during the prenatal period.
Two routine screenings will be carried out. One will take place during the hospital visit prior to delivery while the second one will be carried out during a home visit by a midwife when the baby is between five to six weeks old.
Parents living in adverse circumstances and need of specialised support will be helped out.
Professor Angela Abela from the Department of Family Studies at the University of Malta said that the aim of the pilot study is to enforce positive parenting and to help parents to better communicate between themselves and their children.
“We want to provide this service to all parents, including fathers, as they too suffer from anxiety and depression after their partner has given birth, and we want to ensure that they are given the necessary support too.”
The project, the first of its kind, was born out of the Positive Parenting Task Force, set up in 2018.
The task force was led by the family, education and health ministries.
'If you face problems speak up'
Addressing the launch, Family Minister Michael Falzon said it was "extremely important" that parents reached out when they faced difficulties.
"If you have a problem, if you feeling anxious or depressed, please speak out and ask for help.”
The minister added that the task force had launched two campaigns focusing on young children and adolescents.
Three out of every four parents of young children who were exposed to the perinatal health pilot strategy wanted to learn more about it.
Following the campaign focusing on adolescents, it transpired that 74 per cent of Maltese couples have one child, 24 per cent have two children and only two per cent have three or more children.
“We hope that this pilot strategy will help us understand the difficulties that parents are facing and how we can help them overcome those challenges," he said.