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Perinatal Mental Health Archives - Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies: the Montana Coalition

MTPAL: One Number, Two Programs—Empowering Healthcare Providers for Moms and Kids

By Community Support, Maternal Mental Health

Thanks to Shawnalea Chief Goes Out, Perinatal Health Program Officer for the Member Health Management Bureau of the Health Resources Division, for authoring this guest post!

In Montana, healthcare providers now have a powerful new tool to support maternal and pediatric mental health through the Montana Psychiatric Access Line (MTPAL). Combining two vital programs—MTPAL for Moms and MTPAL for Children—this initiative expands access to expert consultation, resources, and training, ensuring that both mothers and children receive timely, high-quality care for behavioral health concerns.

One number, two programs.

PRISM for Moms and MAPP-NET is now Montana Psychiatric Access Line (MTPAL). Access perinatal and pediatric mental health care services at MTPAL.org or 1-844-40-MTPAL or 1-844-406-8725.

The MT PAL program is a comprehensive initiative designed to enhance the capability of health care providers in both maternal and pediatric settings. MTPAL for Moms focuses on expanding providers’ capacity to screen, assess, treat, and refer patients for maternal mental health and substance use disorders during or after pregnancy, ensuring holistic care for maternal well-being. Simultaneously, MT PAL for Children aims to integrate behavioral health into pediatric primary care, utilizing telehealth modalities to offer high-quality and timely detection, assessment, treatment, and referral for children and adolescents with behavioral health conditions. Both facets of the program emphasize the use of evidence-based practices and methods, striving to deliver effective and accessible health care for mothers and their children.

  • Training and Education for Treatment for Healthcare Professionals
  • Telehealth Consultation and Referral
  • Resource for Healthcare Professionals

Announcing MTPAL for Moms Learning Hub

Each month, our expert hub publishes didactics to empower clinicians in evidence-based best practices in the care and treatment of pregnant and postpartum patients who have mental health concerns. All trainings are presented free of charge to Montana healthcare professionals.

Simply sign up on MTPAL.org to join our list and access the first training – Understanding Perinatal Mental Health: Prevalence, Risks, and Impacts.

Join us March 18,19th in Helena, MT for our combined Perinatal and Pediatric Mental Health Symposium https://www.umt.edu/pediatric-mental-health-symposium/ .Here we will be launching our new MTPAL Psychiatric Access Line along with providing great training and learning opportunities.

7th Annual Perinatal Mental Health Conference Recap

By Community, Community Support, Maternal Mental Health, Perinatal Substance Use Disorders, Self-care

The HMHB team is grateful for the opportunity to reflect on the 7th Annual Perinatal Mental Health Conference. Returning to in-person convening, we valued the chance to connect face-to-face with participants, speakers, partners, exhibitors, and sponsors. We also enjoyed moments of virtual connection and were thankful to balance in-person and online options for people working across the state of Montana to support perinatal mental health. Our heartfelt thanks go to everyone who gathered in person or online to make this event meaningful.

Perinatal Mental Health 101

The conference kicked off in September with two bonus Perinatal Mental Health 101 sessions led by Dr. Samantha Greenberg. These foundational sessions provided valuable insights for individuals new to the perinatal mental health field or those looking to deepen their understanding of the basics. Dr. Greenberg’s content remains accessible to all on the HMHB website.

 In-Person Conference

On October 15-16, the in-person conference was held at the Delta Colonial Hotel in Helena, MT, where over 150 attendees joined for learning, connection, and sharing. Presenters thoughtfully crafted sessions on topics ranging from lived experiences in perinatal mental health to doula work and pelvic floor health. We are deeply thankful for the panelists who kindly shared their insights, lived experiences, and expertise. In a community engagement poster session, twelve groups from across Montana shared about their impactful, community-based work supporting perinatal mental health.

Keynote speaker, Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, offered insights on Real Self-Care from her bestselling book—a reminder of the importance of self-care for those dedicated to caring for others.

Another memorable moment was the screening of the documentary film SILOED, followed by a panel led by Director Hazel Cramer. This discussion covered the journey of making the film and thoughtful (and sometimes funny!) conversations among participants surrounding mental health.

 Virtual Advanced Training Sessions

Two days of virtual learning took place on October 22 and 24, covering Perinatal Substance Use and Perinatal Nutrition. These sessions featured local and national experts, allowing attendees to continue engaging and connecting through our virtual platform, Whova. You can explore the full conference agenda here.

 We Can’t Wait for Next Year!

We are already excited to start planning our 8th Annual Perinatal Mental Health Conference! To stay updated on next year’s conference dates and content, please subscribe to the HMHB newsletter or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

 Thanks to Exhibitors!

Thanks to Sponsors!

pmhc SPONSORS

Thanks to Our Event Manager!

We also wanted to share our gratitude for our amazing Event Manager, Anna Strange. This event wouldn’t have been the same without her kindness, creativity and attention to detail.

We are grateful to all who participated for their support and contributions to this event!

A Week of Connection and Learning in the HMHB World!

By advocacy, Community, Community Support, Early Childhood, Montana Early Childhood Coalition, Positive Childhood Experiences

It has been an exciting week at Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies (HMHB), filled with opportunities for connection and collaboration. We were thrilled to participate in two meaningful events.

Montana Early Childhood Coalition Meeting

On Monday, with our partners from the Center for Children, Families & Workforce Development and Zero to Five, we helped convene the first in-person meeting of the Montana Early Childhood Coalition (MTECC) in several years. The MTECC consists of dedicated individuals who work at the community level through their local early childhood coalitions and other service providing organizations. The in-person meeting provided an excellent platform for participants to share ideas and discuss what’s working locally. Attendees exchanged insights, built connections, and shared innovative ideas with stakeholders from across the state. The meeting also included dialogues with representatives from statewide organizations and discussions on recent studies and needs assessments.

For more information about the Montana Early Childhood Coalition or to see if you or your organization might be eligible to participate, visit the MTECC website or please contact:

Resilience Rising: Positive Childhood Experiences Summit

On Tuesday, HMHB helped host the Resilience Rising: Positive Childhood Experiences (PCE) Summit. Members of the MTECC joined various stakeholders and professionals from across the state to explore the importance of positive childhood experiences.

The summit featured expert speakers, including:

  • Christina D. Bethell, PhD – Director, Child and Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  • Donald Warne, MD, MPH – Co-Director, Center for Indigenous Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  • Stacy Dreessan & Teresa Nygaard – Child Abuse Prevention Centers of Montana
  • Faith Price, PhD – Research Associate, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  • James Caringi, PhD – Professor, University of Montana School of Public & Community Health Sciences, College of Health
  • Becky Franks – Special Projects Director, The Montana Institute

The event also highlighted community-based successes spearheaded by these dedicated professionals in Lincoln and Park Counties:

The summit included discussions on the science and significance of PCEs, including in Indigenous populations, and insights from direct service providers on fostering PCE-informed communities. While session recordings aren’t available, you can find more information on the speakers and their work in the links provided above.

Upcoming Events

Carrying forward the energy of this week, we wanted to share reminders about several upcoming events and learning opportunities before the end of the year!

Perinatal Mental Health 101

Mark your calendars for Perinatal Mental Health 101 on September 10 and 17. This FREE virtual training is open to anyone interested in learning the basics of perinatal mental health. Dr. Samantha Greenberg from Greater Valley Health Center in Kalispell, MT, will lead the sessions.  Click here to register for this exciting event!

Perinatal Mental Health Conference

Following Dr. Greenberg’s sessions, we are thrilled to host the 7th Annual Perinatal Mental Health Conference in-person! You can find more information here.  We have some incredible national and local speakers and panelists we will be announcing soon! While we will offer a virtual option for those unable to travel to Helena, we look forward to the in-person connection and networking. Click here to register for this exciting event!

For more training and development opportunities across the state and within the perinatal mental health landscape, please visit our training opportunities page.

We loved seeing so many wonderful faces this week (in person and virtually!) and hope to continue the great connections and conversations throughout the rest of the year and beyond!

HMHB in April Issue of Health Affairs

By Community Support, Maternal Mental Health, Native American Initiatives, Native Cultural Connections, Parenting

Behind the Scenes: A Strategy to Support Perinatal Mental Health By Collaborating With Tribal Communities in Montana (A note from our Executive Director, Stephanie Morton)

Hello HMHB Supporters,

I am elated to share that staff at HMHB authored an article that will be featured in Health Affairs, April issue on Perinatal Mental Health and Wellbeing.  You can link directly to the article and full April Issue (both are open access).

Led by Dr. Amy Stiffarm, PhD, MPH, Director of Native American Initiatives at HMHB, HMHB staff including myself, Dawn Gunderson, CLC, Program and Communications Coordinator and former Executive Director, Brie MacLaurin, collaborated with Nicole Redvers, Maridee Shogren, Terri Wright and Andrew Williams, to produce the article titled, “A Strategy to Support Perinatal Mental Health by Collaborating With Tribal Communities in Montana.” The article highlights work completed to include family-supporting resources on Reservations in Montana into the LIFTS Online Resource Guide (hmhb-lifts.org). This project was completed in partnership with HMHB and Dr. Stiffarm while she was a graduate student at the University of North Dakota in the Indigenous Health Program. Funding from the Montana Obstetrics and Maternal Support (MOMS) Program made it possible for the HMHB Team to fittingly engage Tribal communities in the process of mapping local resource relevant to pregnant and parenting families to be listed in the LIFTS Resource Guide.

The HMHB team is so appreciative of the funding, partnership and support that has allowed us to engage in this important work. Many of you have been key partners in this work and for that we are deeply grateful. Additionally, we are so thankful for the community members who shared their time and knowledge to improve the system of care for families in Indian Country in Montana. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Stiffarm and the team on this success. We are so proud to work with you all to continue to improve the health and wellbeing of Montana moms, babies and families.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Morton
Executive Director

 

Find Native Cultural Connections and other support in your community on the LIFTS Online Resource Guide at https://hmhb-lifts.org/.

Learn more about Dr. Amy Stiffarm’s work and our Native American Initiatives Program