title: Building Bridges: Lessons from a Pittsburgh Partnership to Strengthen Systems of Care for Maternal Depression.
abstract: Between January 2007 and June 2010, members of the Allegheny County Maternal and Child Health Care Collaborative designed, implemented, and evaluated the Allegheny County Maternal Depression Initiative, a local system-change effort focused on increasing identification, referrals, and engagement in treatment as needed and appropriate for women at high risk for maternal depression. The collaborative was successful in improving key organizational and clinical processes related to the achievement of its aims. This article describes how and why the initiative was created, the processes through which it was implemented and evaluated, and the results and lessons learned. It concludes with recommendations in four areas for practice and policy change designed to expand and sustain the initiative's achievements: improve identification of maternal depression, enhance access to available resources and services, increase engagement in behavioral health treatment, and improve overall system performance.
authors.forename: Donna J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Keyser
authors.forename: Ellen Burke
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Beckjord
authors.forename: Ray
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Firth
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Frith
authors.forename: Susan L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Lovejoy
authors.forename: Sanjith
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pillai
authors.forename: Dana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schultz
authors.forename: Harold Alan
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Pincus