Racial Cultural perceptions of Registered Nurses associated with Dissertation

Racial Cultural perceptions of Registered Nurses associated with screening for PPD - Dissertation Example PPD belongs to a spectrum of psychiatric disorders experienced by women which ranges in severity from maternal blues, which is short-lived lasing from a few hours to a few days, to postpartum psychosis, which is the most severe disorder belonging to this group (Halbreich & Karkun, 2006). The prevalence of postpartum depression varies amongst different socioeconomic, racial, cultural and age groups and can range from 10%-15% in the general population (Driscoll, 2006), to as high as 37% amongst women belonging to lower socioeconomic strata (Segre, O'Hara, Arndt, & Beck, 2010) and 48%, in the adolescent age group (Driscoll, 2006). PPD is thought to occur from interplay between a variety of different factors which can be broadly categorized into three main categories, viz. Biological/Physiological factors, Psychological factors and Social/Cultural factors (Nahas & Amasheh, 1999; Callister, Beckstrand, & Corbet, 2010). Cultural and social factors have been found to play an important role in the etiology of PPD. This has several implications in the screening, diagnosis and treatment of PPD. Since nurses play a pivotal role in screening and diagnosis of postpartum psychiatric disorders, they should be aware of the role of culture in the causation and screening of PPD and should provide ‘Transcultural Care’ as proposed by Leininger (Leininger, 1998). This paper discusses the several cultural factors involved in the causation of PPD, the role of nurses in providing screening and treatment services for women regarding PPD during the postpartum period and the racial cultural perceptions of Registered Nurses regarding the screening for PPD. Etiology of PPD As discussed above, the etiology of PPD is multifactorial. It was previously postulated that PPD was exclusively biological in nature, caused by the drop in the levels of different hormones such as estrogen and progesterone in the body of the mother occurring after the delivery of the baby (Driscoll, 2006). Other biologic/physiological factors implicated in the etiology of PPD include genetic predisposition and physiological disturbances occurring as a result of sleep deprivation, amongst others. However, it has been now elucidated that PPD results from interplay between biologic and environmental factors, including and not limited to, social and cultural factors. Some of cultural factors which have been found to contribute towards the causation of PPD include a history of pre-existing depression in the mother, lack of social support, belonging to a low socioeconomic status, untoward or difficult pregnancy, history of stresses occurring during the postpartum period such as those associated with child care or an infant born with health issues, difficult family relationships, maternal age at the time of delivery and the gender of the newborn, since sons are more desirable than daughters in certain cultures and the birth of a daughter is associated with significant psychological distress (Driscoll, 2006; Goldbort, 2006). As depicted above, cultural influences contribute significantly in the causation of PPD. Thus, any strategies which are aimed at either screening, diagnosing and treating PPD should be tailored in a culturally appropriate manner. The role of Registered Nurses in the management of PPD Nurses play a significant role in the