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About a hundred public maternity hospitals and child and family health services in Australia are accessing smarter support for screening perinatal mental health.
Melbourne-based not-for-profit Centre of Perinatal Excellence (COPE), which positions itself as Australia's peak body for perinatal mental health, has recently rolled out an upgraded version of its existing digital platform, iCOPE.
HOW IT WORKS
Powered by Personify Care, the platform now incorporates tailored questions for fathers and non-birthing partners, previously limited to birthing partners, and expands its coverage to other conditions, such as complex trauma, ADHD, and ASD and life stressors such as unplanned pregnancy or financial strain, immigration status and housing insecurity.
COPE says the upgraded iCOPE platform now includes secure login and expanded language access in 32 languages. Users can complete assessments more quickly from any internet-connected device, with advice and support resources now downloadable and personalised based on screening results. The update also adds antenatal and postnatal information and introduces options for culturally specific screening tools.
For clinicians, the upgraded platform now directly embeds expanded advice on risk factors into clinical reports, supporting informed decision-making.
A new clinical dashboard highlights patients who require immediate review and provides at-a-glance information on platform usage and screening rates. It also tracks prevalence, trends, service gaps and workforce training needs. The upgraded iCOPE now enables clinicians to automate follow-up screening and configure screening tools.
As of publishing, over 1,000 screens have been completed using iCOPE 2.0, and over 300 patients have completed the post-screening follow-up survey, COPE told Healthcare IT News.
WHY IT MATTERS
COPE emphasised the urgent need for early screening of mental health conditions during and after pregnancy, noting that three in 10 new parents are at risk.
The latest enhancements to the digital psychosocial screening tool – particularly the addition of customised clinical advice for each assessment – are expected to better support frontline clinicians during post-screening discussions and decision-making.
"Feedback from clinicians highlighted the need for greater support for frontline workers (particularly those with less experience) when identifying specific risk factors," COPE told this publication. "This was especially important for sensitive items related to past abuse or family violence."
The upgraded platform is also expected to improve care coordination, reduce duplication, and provide clients with clearer insights into their mental health.
THE LARGER TREND
Other maternity and family healthcare providers across Australia have also digitised their patient pathways in recent years.
Last year, Canberra Antenatal Care adopted Personify Care's digital platform to let clients complete required assessments and consent forms before their appointments. Nourish Baby, an accredited digital antenatal education and care provider, has also adopted the same platform.
In 2022, the Northern Adelaide Local Health Network in South Australia digitised its prenatal care workflow and introduced an online pregnancy platform with Personify Care.
Meanwhile, an indigenous community-led project with the University of Queensland is linking disparate health records of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders across health facilities to improve maternal and perinatal health outcomes.
