Completed

Online Public Health Nurse-Delivered Group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Postpartum Depression

What is being tested

Group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

Behavioral

Who is being recruted

Urogenital Diseases+5

+ Mental Disorders

+ Depressive Disorder

From 18 to 99 Years

+2 Eligibility Criteria

See all eligibility criteria

How is the trial designed

Treatment Study

Interventional

Study Start: March 2020

See protocol details

Summary

Principal SponsorMcMaster University

Last updated: January 28, 2026

Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Study start date: March 30, 2020

Actual date on which the first participant was enrolled.

A prospective, 1-site, parallel group, RCT (1:1 ratio) in which outcome assessors and data analysts will be blinded to maternal treatment will be used to compare online PHN-delivered group CBT for PPD to postnatal care as usual. The primary objective of this study is to determine if online group CBT for PPD delivered by public health nurses is superior to postnatal care as usual in: a) acutely treating PPD, b) reducing relapse and recurrence, c) improving common comorbidities and complications of PPD including anxiety and the mother-infant relationship, and d) to determine if this treatment is cost-effective. Women in the treatment group will participate in a 9-week group CBT intervention for PPD delivered via Zoom by two public health nurses. It consists of 9 weekly 2-hour sessions where core CBT skills are learned and practiced, and a new psychoeducational topic is introduced and discussed by women each week.

Official TitleOnline Public Health Nurse-Delivered Group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Postpartum Depression

NCT04928742

Principal SponsorMcMaster University

Last updated: January 28, 2026

Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Protocol

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

Design Details

159 patients to be enrolled

Total number of participants that the clinical trial aims to recruit.

Treatment Study

These studies test new ways to treat a disease, condition, or health issue. The goal is to see if a new drug, therapy, or approach works better or has fewer side effects than existing options.

Eligibility

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria: person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Conditions

Criteria

Female

Biological sex of participants that are eligible to enroll.

From 18 to 99 Years

Range of ages for which participants are eligible to join.

Healthy volunteers not allowed

If individuals who are healthy and do not have the condition being studied can participate.

Conditions

Pathology

Urogenital DiseasesMental DisordersDepressive DisorderFemale Urogenital Diseases and Pregnancy ComplicationsPregnancy ComplicationsPuerperal DisordersDepression, PostpartumMood Disorders

Criteria

1 inclusion criteria required to participate

Eligible women will be >18 years of age, understand and speak English (so that they can participate in the CBT group and complete study measures), have an EPDS score between of 10 or more and meet diagnostic criteria for current major depressive disorder on the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview-Plus (MINI-Plus). They will also all be within 12 months of delivering an infant.

1 exclusion criteria prevent from participating

In order to increase the relevance and generalizability of our findings, women can have psychiatric comorbidities with the exception of bipolar disorder, a current psychotic, substance or alcohol use disorder, or antisocial or borderline personality disorder. These are predictors of significant difficulty participating in therapy groups and/or non-response to CBT.

Study Plan

Find out more about all the medication administered in this study, their detailed description and what they involve.

Treatment Groups

Study Objectives

One single intervention group is designated in this study

This study does not include a placebo group

Treatment Groups

Group I

Experimental

Participants assigned to the treatment group will participate in a 9-week group CBT intervention for PPD delivered via Zoom by two public health nurses. This intervention was developed by Dr. Van Lieshout (PI) at the Women's Health Concerns Clinic (WHCC) at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton. It was designed to be brief, simple, and applicable to women in community settings. It consists of 9 weekly 2-hour sessions where core CBT skills are learned and practiced, and a new psychoeducational topic is introduced and discussed by women each week. All participants in the treatment group will be mailed a hardcopy of the program manual.

Study Objectives

Primary Objectives

Secondary Objectives

Study Centers

These are the hospitals, clinics, or research facilities where the trial is being conducted. You can find the location closest to you and its status.

This study has 1 location

Suspended

McMaster University

Hamilton, CanadaOpen McMaster University in Google Maps

CompletedOne Study Center