Incidence of postpartum depression decreases after initial expansion of military maternity leave
Herrick, M. S. R., & Chai, W. (2023). Incidence of postpartum depression decreases after initial expansion of military maternity leave. Military Medicine, Article usad354. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usad354
Abstract Created by REACH
In 2016, Service members’ maternity leave increased from 6 to 12 weeks. This study used medical records to compare the rate of postpartum depression diagnoses of active-duty women who received 6 weeks of leave (i.e., gave birth between 2011–2015) and those who received 12 weeks (i.e., gave birth between 2016–2019). Collectively, 4.8% of Servicewomen were diagnosed with postpartum depression. In the first 2 years of the new maternity leave policy (2016-17), a Servicewoman’s odds of receiving a postpartum depression diagnosis were reduced by 50%. In 2018 and 2019, however, the rate of this diagnosis increased substantially, which may have been related to mandates that increased screening.
Research summaries convey terminology used by the scientists who authored the original research article; some terminology may not align with the federal government's mandated language for certain constructs.
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