Grant: Project Grant - PA: Research in First Nations, Inuit and/or Métis Health

Health care providers in Canada are reporting unprecedented levels of burnout and poor mental health; those who care for pregnant persons with psycho-social comorbidities (PSM) are especially vulnerable to occupational stress and more likely to leave the profession. We will work with two interprofessional teams that have established successful inpatient and outpatient services for pregnant persons with psycho-social comorbidities (PSM) in Vancouver and Winnipeg, to develop a Psychosocial Perinatal Mentorship Framework to address severe care gaps for persons who have PSM. A core component of the project is role-matched mentorship, so that health care providers and staff at each site will learn from each other and identify strategies that have enhanced their ability to provide high quality care to persons with PSM while also preserving their own well-being. There will be three points of data collection that inform the construction of the Framework: 1) survey of perinatal teams in BC and MB, 2) peer-matched focus groups between team members,3) Operationalizing/evaluating the Framework. Partnership with Indigenous Knowledge Carriers/Elders, patients, and knowledge users will ensure that the project results in outputs that are relevant to policy and practice, sensitive to the needs of patients, relevant to the rural context and culturally safe. We hypothesize that an evidence-informed Psychosocial Perinatal Mentorship Framework will enhance the formation of interprofessional teams grounded in principle-based care across the continuum of care. We anticipate that this framework will contribute to improved collaborations, supportive health workforce culture, and the delivery of comprehensive wrap around care for pregnant persons with psychosocial comorbidities, thus addressing gaps in care associated with increased maternal morbidity.